


That'll Teach The Disney Royals

by Captain_Ravenclaw_49



Category: Beauty and the Beast (1991), Cinderella (1950), Disney Princesses, Frozen (Disney Movies), Tangled (2010), The Little Mermaid (1989)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Boarding School, Education, Experimentation, High School, Historical Fantasy, Multi, POV First Person, Reality TV
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-04
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-01-22 21:03:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 25,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21308581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Captain_Ravenclaw_49/pseuds/Captain_Ravenclaw_49
Summary: A hybrid of both the Disney Princess franchise and the British historical reality show 'That'll Teach 'Em: Boys VS Girls'. Some of the Princesses decide to go back in time to experience 4 weeks at a 1950s grammar school to see if they can cope with the punishing environment of school life in post-war Britain. So, how will they cope with harsh discipline, austere living conditions and a tough academic timetable with an emphasis on the sciences? The series spans 5 episodes, and each episode will be covered by 4 chapters, amounting to 20 chapters overall.
Relationships: Adam/Belle (Disney), Anna/Elsa/Rapunzel (Disney), Ariel/Eric, Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Prince Charming/Cinderella (Disney)
Kudos: 1





	1. Into The 50s

One night in August 2004, I was just watching an episode of the British reality show 'That'll Teach 'Em', experimenting how 30 teenagers fresh out of high school would cope in a 1950s grammar school for 4 weeks. The series was a very interesting concept, and Eugene and I were hooked. After 5 fantastic episodes, we all felt those kids had come out of that gruelling timewarp having achieved something, and we interested to know what it would feel like looking at the whole thing from the inside. In April 2005, we wrote to Twenty Twenty Productions (the production company) if they intended to make a second series, and that we were interested in applying. We spread the news over the phone; some of the Princesses had a better reaction than others. Cinderella, for example remarked 'I definitely want to give that a go; I always like a challenge'. Others, like Aurora were a little more hesitant. When I asked her about it, she remarked 'It's a little too far out of my comfort zone'. We were all looking forward to this challenge; we were told the 1950s were seen by many as the golden age of education; an era of discipline, morality and academic rigour.

In late July 2005, we eventually landed at London Stansted Airport and stayed overnight in a hotel, before making the long journey to Ipswich, where the show was to be filmed. We were to study for 4 weeks at Charles Darwin Grammar School; a fictional boarding school kitted out to 1950s standards, and with an emphasis, as the name suggests, on the sciences. Some of the other contestants were droning on to the cameras about what they were worried about; some were worried about giving up their favourite personal items, others about the terrible living conditions they would have to endure. Most of us attended co-ed schools and were taught in mixed classes, but little did we know we would have to endure a staple feature of grammar schools back in the day; teaching boys and girls separately. We all made our way to the assembly hall where the Headmaster was to give his welcome speech. We sat on different rows. Eugene and I sat on the front row. One of the first kids we came across was William Ho; a heavy Chinese bloke who hailed from Hartlepool; food was quite important to his life and his only source of exercise was a disco machine at a local arcade. 'Hi, I'm William Ho', he said, shaking Eugene's hand. 'And I'm Eugene Fitzherbert', he replied. 'How difficult do you think this is gonna be?', Ho asked. 'I think it might be a little difficult but nothing too overwhelming', Eugene assured him. 'I guess you're right. I may have bitten off more than I can chew with this 1950s school but I do enjoy a challenge'.

Cinderella and Kit, meanwhile, sat on the second row. One of the first friends they made was Luke Mills; a true Liverpudlian with an attitude and an answer for everything. Luke reckoned he could always talk his way out of trouble. 'Oh, hi. You must be Cinderella', said a surprise Luke. 'Yes, that's right', Cinderella replied as she and Kit sat down next to him. 'I'm Luke Mills', he said 'Nice to meet you, Luke', Cinderella replied, shaking Luke's hand. 'I am a bit of a rebel, to be honest, Cindy. I definitely thing people respect me from an academic point of view. They look at me and think 'wow, that's really something he's doing to get those top marks and to get those A*s'. I've never met a teacher today that doesn't like me. I've definitely got the gift of the gab. Hopefully I'll be able to talk my way out of trouble', Luke explained. Cinderella, already somewhat impressed with Luke's attitude toward unreasonable authority figures wished him 'Well, good luck'. Sitting on the other side of Luke was a blonde bloke called Simon Taylor. He was the polar opposite of Luke's personality; he always kept his cool in almost any situation and never had that 'northern cockiness'. Anna and Elsa were also sitting on the front row, next to Kayleigh Durman; a total lovebird who hailed from Somerset. She was mad about boys; she was always on the phone with them, she loved going out with them; boys were her life. Belle and Adam, meanwhile, ended up next to idler Brennon Gunston. He was a complete lazy fool and did not like challenges. His parents were not convinced he would last long, but he thought 'no way is 1950s schooling gonna be any worse than what we have now'.

The staff filed into the room and onto the stage. They were all dressed in capes, while the men wore mortar boards. The school's deputy head James Williams stepped onto the podium to announce the Headmaster's arrival. 'Will everyone please stand for our Headmaster'. We all stood up as the school's hammy Headmaster, Simon Warr marched up the podium to deliver his welcome speech. 'Would you sit down, please', he asked. We all sat down, and so began our induction into 1950s education. ‘Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to Charles Darwin Grammar. My name is S.R Warr, and I am the Headmaster. I should like to draw your attention to our school motto; ‘Solum Supersunt Fortissimi’. ‘Only The Fittest Survive’. You are about to enter the 1950s; a decade of strict discipline, austere living conditions, and post-war depression. You will face monumental challenges in every aspect of school life, and as you are about to discover, competition is the key word here at Charles Darwin Grammar. There will be competition both in and outside the classroom, where you’ll be taught in single gender forms. You will be able to concentrate on the learning process, without any distraction from pupils of the opposite gender. At the end of these four weeks, you will sit genuine 1950s O-Levels across 5 subjects; Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and English Language. We are going to push you, and push you to the very limits of your abilities, to help you achieve success. You now have three minutes, precisely, to say goodbye to your families’. We then had three minutes to part ways with our families and thank them for bringing us. Some of us like Cinderella and Kit were feeling fairly confident; as was I. Eugene, on the other hand, was already having doubts. After those three minutes had passed, Mr Warr called out ‘Well, there we are, then, parents and friends. Please leave the hall now, and we will see you all in four weeks’ time’. Our families then left the hall and waved goodbye to us; leaving us to enter the harsh world of the 1950s on our own.

We were immediately segregated. Mr Williams then called out ‘Girls, would you please line up outside. Boys, stay where you are’. Housemistress Annabelle Bryant and English teacher Jeanette Gibson lead us out of hall and over to the main schoolhouse. We were to stay in a dorm called Nightingale Dorm, and we had our first taste of 1950s standards at the hands of the school's Matron, Pat Crowe. The three of them were all sticklers for neatness. 'What I want you to do is to remove all your jewellery and makeup, and we will then give you a thorough check-through', she instructed. We all took off our jewellery and makeup as per 1950s standards, but when giving me a final check, Miss Gibson noticed I had a bit of my necklace stuck to my neck. 'Right, when you go upstairs to Matron, could you ask her to remove that with her surgical tools?', she asked. 'I will', I answered as I moseyed up to Matron's surgery to have that last little bit of jewellery yanked out. One girl; Vicki Buxton was already in trouble; she had put an on excessive amount of eye shadow makeup, and was sent back to wash off whatever was left. Mr Williams, meanwhile, escorted the boys to the barbers to get a regulatory short back and sides. Some of the boys were too scruffy for 1950s schools; poor Eugene had to have all his facial hair shaved off. 'There, at least we can see what you look like now, Fitzherbert', Mr Williams remarked. After all the shaving and makeup removal, we were made to change into our uniforms; our civilian clothes were taken away for storage. I hated the idea of such an itchy suit and was quick to complain. 'Can you do your top button up, Rapunzel', Matron requested. 'It'll strangle me', I complained. 'Not at the moment, you're not being strangled, but if you carry on with that attitude, I may well do so!', she barked back at me. I knew complaining was not an option at Charles Darwin Grammar, unless it was to Mr Warr.

Once we finally had every vestige of the 21st Century stripped of us, we all met on the lawn for the school photo. The boys were now cut off from the girls with the 'Six-Inch Rule'; we were no longer allowed to go within six inches of each other. In the diary room, we all complained to the cameras about the Six-Inch Rule; we were used to engaging in full-on romances in our old schools, and now we weren't allowed to touch each other. Wonderful. God knows what Mr Warr would do to Eugene if I dared to go within six inches of him. Our first dose of 50s examination was about to hit us hard...


	2. In The Firing Line

Just six hours into term, we were being thrown straight in at the deep end. Before our 4 weeks of traditional teaching in single-sex classes could begin, the staff would need to assess how far we had to go to reach the required standard. We were to take three examination papers that afternoon; Biology, Chemistry and Physics. The boys were being invigilated by Dr Andrew Szydlo, an Anglo-Polish teacher who specialised in Chemistry, while us girls were under the beady eye of Dr Peter Wilde, a Liverpudlian Physics teacher. The staff had selected easy questions for the purpose of our exams. For example, in Biology, the kids would have to write an essay explaining how the human body digested fats, proteins and starches. Some of us poor souls were genuinely baffled by the material. One boy, John Kemple tried to ask Dr Szydlo what a certain term meant in the digestive system. To his dismay, Dr Sydlo said 'I'm afraid I can't answer any questions whatsoever. Just try your best', as Kemple looked on, not knowing what the hell to write. During her Chemistry exam, Cinderella had to write the definition of the term 'compound'. The full, professional definition was 'two or more elements chemically combined in fixed proportions by mass', but Cinderella only managed to write down half the definition; 'two or more elements chemically combined'. She raised her and and asked Dr Wilde 'Is this the full definition of 'compound'', Sir?'. Dr Wilde told her 'I'm sorry, Cinderella. We cannot reveal any of the answers until the papers have been marked'. Cinderella carried on writing, unsure if what she had written was correct.

We were to get our exam results the following day, but for the moment, we had more pressing matters. Matron was about to conduct her first routine inspection. First up were the boys of Beagle Dorm. The diminutive Phil Donald had hidden a telltale bar of Cadbury's Dairy Milk under his bed. Mr Williams ordered him to pick it up, but as he did so, he revealed more chocolates, and earnt a detention for deceit; he had not revealed there were more chocolates. Pint-sized Phil needed his food more than most; he had a growth hormone deficiency, and so he had to inject himself with sugar every few months. He had already gained a few inches. He knew he would have a hard time with the disgusting food of the 50s, and so he decided to stash some candy. Meanwhile, over in Nightingale Dorm, Matron sent the girls packing while she and Miss Bryant conducted a search for illegal contraband. They came across many items including candy, makeup and to their horror...my frying pan! I had smuggled it along with me for self-defense should I be sent to see Mr Warr. After a successful raid, we were all summoned back in. Matron asked me, point blank if any of the contraband was mine. I decided to take the blame for Vicki Buxton's contraband as well as my frying pan, but Matron knew I was lying. 'I take the blame for everyone, Matron', I protested. 'Well you are a deceitful young lady, Rapunzel. I'm referring this straight to the Headmaster'. Matron went to the Headmaster's Office to inform Mr Warr of my deceit. A few minutes later, I was informed that Mr Warr wanted to see me immediately. 'I'll hand my pan over to him', I promised. 'He doesn't care if you hand it over', Matron retorted.

I marched up to the Headmaster's Office and waited outside to be called in. I brought my frying pan along with me so Mr Warr would know I was capable of defending myself. 'Come in, young lady', he ordered. I entered the room with a bold expression on my face and crunched my knuckles to show him I was made of sterner stuff than he might have thought. 'I understand, Rapunzel, from what Matron has told me, you have decided to shield your friends from getting into trouble', he growled. Mr Warr pulled a cartoonish glare at me which looked like a hand-drawn sad face. 'YOU TRIED TO PROTECT VICTORIA BUXTON, AND I DEMAND TO KNOW WHY!', he roared at me. 'It wasn't *all* her's, Sir', I calmly said. 'Well, you have been dishonest, Rapunzel! I am telling you now; you cannot protect any of your fellow students in this school, and I mean not one!'. He pulled his animated glare at me every time he stopped yelling. I was incensed with Warr trying to fault me for protecting Vicki. If there's one thing I hate more than anything else, it's unreasonable authoritarians, and Mr Warr was definitely a target. 'HOW DARE YOU ACCUSE ME OF SUCH A THING?!', I screamed in his face. As my ire built, so did his. 'YOU ARE ALL EQUALLY LIABLE IN MY SCHOOL!', he screamed back at me. The ordeal had now escalated into a shouting match. 'AND IT IS AN ABSOLUTE SHAME THAT YOU AND VICTORIA ARE THE FIRST TWO GIRLS WHOSE NAMES I KNOW, AND TO THINK, YOU LOOKED REASONABLY INTELLIGENT AND SENSIBLE PRIOR TO THIS INCIDENT, AND YOUR DECEIT HAS SHOCKED ME TO THE CORE!', he battled on. 'WELL, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK! THIS IS ONLY A TV SHOW! THERE ARE CAMERAS IN THIS VERY ROOM!', I retorted, this time, getting in Mr Warr's face. He got into my personal space and retorted with 'YOU IMPERTINENT LITTLE-'. It was the final straw for me. Before Mr Warr could complete his insult, I raised my frying pan to take a swipe at him, until he put his hands in front of his head to shield himself. After a seconds of tense silence, I realized I had gone too far and was briefly traumatized by my own behaviour. 'Look, I'm sorry, Sir. I just hate being insulted, and I just don't like unreasonable authority figures', I explained. Mr Warr took a deep breath to calm his nerves and his cartoonish glare and bulging eyes finally disappeared. He sat forward a little more and said 'Alright, I accept your apology. Now just listen for a moment. I need you to allow my staff to discipline their students the way they feel is right, and as such, you cannot take the blame for other students. I will not have this overprotective attitude, Rapunzel. The fact I know your name can be either a good thing or a bad thing. It can be a bad thing if you continue to behave in such a manner towards my staff, or it could be could thing, perhaps, if you actually start being sensible again. Do you understand what I'm saying?'. 'Yes, Sir', I replied. 'Alright, you may go', he said as I turned to leave. I couldn't quite believe how close I had come to being thrown out after only one day at Charles Darwin Grammar. Had I not stopped myself from hitting Mr Warr with my frying pan, I would've been on my way home. Now that I had been dealt with, I made a promise to try my best not to get into trouble again. Matron ordered bedtime. Miss Bryant and Mr Williams both read bedtime stories, as was the tradition in the 1950s, before lights out.

The following morning, we were all awoken at the ungodly hour of 6am. The boys of Beagle Dorm had been kept awake all night by William Ho's stentorian snoring, but under the cover of darkness, one of the boys got their own back. Sebastian Jefford, who slept on the top bunk above Ho, had covertly put some toothpaste onto his mouth in revenge for keeping him awake. Mr Williams had not caught whiff of it, and even if he had, he wouldn't have punished Jefford for bullying. 1950s grammar schools didn't care much about the welfare of their students. We then headed off to breakfast. We were served a set menu designed to reflect the austerity of the time. Food rationing which began in World War 2 lasted until 1954. Root vegetables such as carrots, turnips and the dreaded swede were all staple foods, and wasting food was out of the question. Having harder nerves than girls, most of the boys were able to see the funny side of the disgusting food, but most of us girls had lost our appetites. After breakfast, we headed off to lessons. The girls were the first to get their exam results. Mr Williams remarked 'Frankly the results our a complete disgrace. I almost gave up the will to live marking these'. One girl, the unfortunate Jessica Boulton got 0/20. 'You're an idiot! A numbskull! A fool! And that will have to change', Mr Williams barked at her. Our results were disastrous. Based on our scores, only 6 of us would've passed our Biology O Levels. Vicki Buxton was in the firing line again. She made a meal out of the question on human digestion; for instance, she referred to the oesophagus as a 'food pipe'. Mr Williams was appalled at her woeful ignorance of basic anatomical facts. 'Oesophagus is the term that we use. Food pipe is what a BABY is told', he snarled. The boys, however had done worse. To give a few examples of their appalling results; William Ho: 1/20, Brennon Gunston: 0/20, Sebastian Jefford: 2/20. Only Kit and Eugene managed to get above 50%, scoring 78% and 81% respectively. Dr Wilde, on the other hand was the lesser of the two evils. He did, of course, point out that their attention span was awful, but he promised to fix it. 'What we have to do is build that up through training. You're going to be doin P.T, we're going to be doing brain training, and what will happen is that during the course of your lessons, you will learn to use scientific terminology confidently', he explained. We were about to enter 4 weeks of intensive education in the sciences. By the end of term, we would have to be dab-hands with dissection, crazy about chemicals, and marvels with magnets. This was where the 'fun' began...


	3. Struggling To Adjust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this particular chapter, and also the next, we switch over to Cinderella's perspective, as she does her best to adapt to the austere environment of Charles Darwin Grammar.

After receiving our appalling exam results, it was finally time for the 'brain training' to begin. The boys had their first Biology lesson with Mr Williams. Right from the outset, we would be subjected to a hands-on approach. Mr WIlliams had designed a simple experiment to demonstrate to the boys how maggots aided decomposition. He called out three boys to the front; William Ho, Prince Kit and finally, James Ingram. James was a pure scientist at heart; science had been integral to his life since he was 10, and had become keen to share his knowledge with pretty much anyone. During his first year in high school, he already knew most of the syllabus and was able to coast through many of his tests. Ingram was a true science geek and he was proud of it. As usual, Brennon Gunston held back and refused to take part. Mr Williams instructed the boys 'What I need you to do is to put your hand in the tank, pick up a handful of maggots and place the maggots on the meat'. An overzealous Ingram remarked 'With pleasure', as he headed up to the tank to slam those maggots down. Next up was Prince Kit, and finally, William Ho. The boys were clearly enjoying watching the experiment; maybe even a little too much. In 1950s science lessons, the emphasis was on learning through doing; an approach that favoured boys over girls. But as years passed, the focus shifted towards textbooks and coursework and boys steadily lost interest. Mr Williams informed the boys that they would revisit the tank periodically to see how things were progressing.

So, how would the girls do? I was called up to the front, along with Sally Rushton; a posh-fun loving perfectionist from Harrogate in Yorkshire, and Jenny Ritzman; an animal lover from Nottingham. Jenny was a lot more squeamish than Sally and I were about maggots. I could take the practical approach in good hands, but poor old Jenny couldn't bear the idea of getting her hands dirty. She had two pet guinea pigs at home and loved them so much that the very idea of doing such things with animals was out of the question, but Mr Williams tried to wake her up. 'All you need to do is to put your hand in and pick up some maggots. It's not difficult'. But after having a go, Jenny clearly found it too much. Mr Williams then turned to some domestic science and told Jenny never to let maggots near food as they speed up the decomposition process. The science teachers knew from the start that practical sciences would be difficult for the girls to handle, but there was little they could do about it.

After our first Biology lesson, it was lunchtime. Before every meal, Mr Warr said his grace; 'For what we are about to receive, may the lord make us truly thankful. Amen'. We all said 'Amen', and sat down to eat. On the menu that day was that 50s culinary delight; spam fritters with mashed swede. While most of the boys devoured the disgusting 1950s tucker, many of us girls were starting to grumble. Kayleigh Durman, for example, remarked that the food 'looked as though it had come out of a science experiment', but we were much tougher than Brennon Gunston, so we ploughed through. I remarked 'I can't go as far to call this 'good', but it's still worth a try'. I was doing my best to adapt to change. Over on the boys' table, Gunston was having a hell of a lot of trouble with the food, and it wasn't over yet. For dessert, there was spotted dick and thin, watery custard. Gunston couldn't bear the damn thing. He ended up drawing a lot of unwanted attention to himself. On the teachers' table, Mr Williams asked Mr Warr for permission to make an example of Gunston in front of his classmates. Mr Warr nodded in approval, and Mr Williams started bellowing down the table. 'Do not look around, do not cringe, do not close your eyes; just eat it, Gunston!', he yelled. But Gunston was now in tears. He started to comment 'What am I supposed to do? There's no music, I can't go out for a smoke, I have to get up early. Can I just go home, please?'. Mr Warr was listening closely to Gunston's remarks and it soon dawned on him how much he had let his trauma get to him. Gunston hadn't stopped moaning and groaning ever since he had his haircut and now wanted to leave Charles Darwin Grammar. Mr Warr announced that Gunston was to report to his office immediately after lunch. 'For what we have received, may the lord make us truly thankful. Amen', he said. 'Amen', we all responded. 'Brennon Gunston will report to my office. The rest of you will now file out'.

Another one of the boys was struggling to adapt. William Ho had become the butt of the boy's jokes since he arrived at Charles Darwin Grammar, but they did still like him. What really got to Ho was the academic pressure and the strict discipline. Dr Wilde found him outside the dining room in distress and felt the need to check up on him. I also decided to intervene. 'Something wrong, Will?', I asked. 'These three days...Have just been killing me', he said with a few tears coming out of his eyes. 'I'm mentally exhausted, and I'm homesick'. I decided to give him a bit of reassurance. 'Now, I know this is hard, but it's not impossible. You're doing very well, Will'. Ho had more determination than Gunston and resolved to stay for the full week once he'd pulled himself together. 'Well, good for you', I replied. 'Alright, just take some time, Ho', Dr Wilde said as he left Ho to gather his thoughts. Meanwhile, Gunston had been summoned to see Mr Warr. As Gunston entered his ersatz office, Warr casually sat forward and started speaking calmly and passively, to lull Gunston into a false sense of security. 'I understand you wish to leave the school', he said. When Gunston replied 'Yes, Sir', Mr Warr abruptly changed his tone and went into a fury. 'Well, probably just as well!', he snapped. 'I am very angry with you, Gunston; I have found you to be a petulant little weakling! Mr Williams and I noticed your behaviour at lunchtime, as you were eating! You were moaning and groaning about the conditions of this school, Gunston; I distinctly heard you, because it's an ingrained habit in you to complain! And your performance this morning in Biology was unacceptable! You refused to take part!'. Before long, Mr Warr reached the apex of his fury and began howling at the top of his lungs. 'YOU HAVE FAILED-TO REACH THE STANDARDS-THAT I HAVE SET IN THIS SCHOOL! AND IF YOU WISH TO LEAVE MY SCHOOL GUNSTON, YOU MAY DO SO WITH MY BLESSING! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!'. Gunston, with his wimpy expression answered 'Yes, Sir'. Mr Warr then sprang up from his office chair, climbed onto his desk, lept off and chased Gunston out of his office. 'LEAVE MY STUDY, AND LEAVE THE SCHOOL!', he thundered. And so, Brennon Gunston left Charles Darwin Grammar in disgrace, having gained nothing from his time there, aside from a free haircut.

Later that night, the boys discovered they were one short. Many were surprised that Gunston had left after just one day. They were all a little homesick, but they had far more brass and were determined to stay. And losing one of their classmates made them change their attitude towards William Ho. He was now starting to get along with the other boys, now that he had found his resolve to stay for the full 4 weeks. 'How many people do you know like Ho? He's slightly Geordie, slightly posh, and slightly Chinese as well!', Luke Mills remarked. 'You're brilliant, Ho, and you're gonna stay', Kit added. 'Yes, I'm gonna stay, no matter what', Ho replied. The boys had already been caught with 21st Century contraband, but they hadn't learnt their lesson. Luke Mills even had a cell phone. But Mr Williams and Dr Wilde soon turned up to raid Beagle Dorm. They conducted a thorough search and found his phone, along with a lot of other contraband. Being as smug as he was, Mills was convinced he could talk his way out of trouble and fabricated an excuse; 'I did not know that was there. Thank you for finding that, Sir, because I've handed everything else in and I did not know my phone was still in the room'. But Mr Williams was set on making sure Mills suffered. 'Mills, despite your protestations, you are in serious breach of these school rules. It seems to me that places in this school may be jeopardized by your behaviour tonight', he said with a stern expression. Mills would have to wait until the following day before Mr Warr decided his fate, and he knew he couldn't get away with deceit. The relentless regime was beginning to take its toll...


	4. The Teacher's Pet Falls From Grace

The following morning, the boys had their first lesson with David Stanley, the school's Music Master. Back in the 1950s, kids often had singing lessons, but their frequency has diminished significantly. And boys being boys, they found it hard to engage and thought it was all a joke, much to Mr Stanley's annoyance. He made them sing a song about William Ho where they repeatedly sung the word 'Ho' over and over again, but Ho found it hilarious, now that he'd gotten his grip. Grammar schools in the 1950s sought to instil students with a sense of uniformity and shared moral values. This was achieved through the tradition of the school song. Unsurprisingly, the song Mr Stanley had written for Charles Darwin Grammar laid it on incredibly thick, with some of the most obvious lyrics one would expect:

** _As we strive to be the best,_ **

** _We must fight to beat the rest,_ **

** _And we know the journey is a long one_ **

** _Where only the strong one can ever take the prize_ **

** _So let's dedicate our lives_ **

** _To the brave men who survive,_ **

** _At the school where hard work is rewarded,_ **

** _Discipline applauded, the wanted victory_ **

** _And may God be always there beside thee_ **

** _Solum Supersunt Fortissimi_ **

The boys didn't like the idea of such a corny school song and found it hard taking it seriously. One of the boys, slovenly Hugh Gilroy didn't even bother singing all the lyrics. And another boy, Scott Peters didn't even sing the lyrics and tried to do a silly acapella, claiming he didn't know the words. 'We have just rehearsed it for the last 35 minutes! And you still do not know the words?!', Mr Stanley snapped at him. 'No, Sir, I don't', Peters retorted in a cocky voice. 'You are stupid! Go and sit down! At lunchtime, we will be re-rehearsing; you and I!', Mr Stanley barked. There was a long way to go before these reluctant performers felt pride in their school song.

We girls, on the other hand, easily outclassed the boys, but more noticeable was our good behaviour. Critics of co-education argued that girls thrived in single-gender classes without the distraction of boys' boisterous antics. But of course, there was an exception from time to time, and this time, I was that exception. I tried to compliment Mr Stanley by cat-calling (referred to as 'wolf-whistling'), but he flipped out at me. 'Don't you dare wolf-whistle in my class, Ella Tremaine! Get out at once', he snapped. Unfortunately, Mr Warr was standing right outside; he was observing the lesson from the back, but remained...surprisingly calm to say the least. 'Why are you standing outside the class?', he asked. 'Because I whistled'. 'Because you whistled? were you asked to whistle?'. I insisted I wasn't being rude. 'Yes, I was showing appreciation, but he must've taken it as rudeness'. Mr Warr then stated what his next course of action would be. 'I shall make further investigation into the circumstances. I can tell you now, people who get sent out of class in this school, I'm not happy about. Now, over there, please and face the wall'. I was made to stand facing the wall with my hands behind my back. Detention awaited me.

But first, lessons, lessons and more lessons. Modern teens clocked up around 28 hours of lesson a week. We would average 40 hours and we needed them badly; our exam results had exposed some appalling gaps in knowledge. When it came to Physics, we girls were astronomically ignorant. Kayleigh Durman had already been made to stand with her arms outstretched, and some heavy books resting on them, as a punishment for not being able to define the 'Big Bang' theory. Dr Wilde was parading around the room, grilling girls with astronomy-related questions based on their exam results. Jessica Boulton, for example, was asked how long it took for the Earth to go around the sun. She guessed 24 hours, but Dr Wilde told her she was wrong. She tried to give the correct answer; 365 days, only to be shouted down by Dr Wilde. He then asked Samantha Wyvill to list the 8 planets in the Solar System, starting with the closest to the sun. She started listing them, but only made it as far as Earth, much to Dr Wilde's disappointment. In the boys' second Biology lesson, the finer points of the human digestive system were a stomach ache for William Ho. He claimed in his exam that all digestion took place in the mouth. Mr Williams asked James Ingram to state roughly how long it took for the human body to digest a meal. He said it took 6-8 hours. 'You presumed wrong about the entire digestive process taking place in the mouth. Do you often keep food in your mouth for up to 6-8 hours?', he asked. Ho stated that one usually keeps food in their mouth for 6-8 seconds at most.

But could I pull my socks up? After being thrown out of music and receiving a number of detentions, Mr Warr decided to give me a chance to redeem myself. He summoned me to his office to sing the school song. I thought this was a very nice opportunity. And so, I started singing in my beautiful, sweet voice; 'As we strive to be the best, we must fight to beat the rest, and we know the journey is a long one where only the strong one can ever take the prize. So let's dedicate our lives, to the brave men who survive, at the school where hard work is rewarded, discipline applauded, the wanted victory. And may God be always there beside thee. Solum Supersunt Fortissimi'. Mr Warr was actually quite impressed. 'That was very, very good. It was in tune, without a piano. I should definitely speak to Mr Stanley about your voice. I think we have to get you into the choir', he remarked. 'Thank you, Sir', I told him. 'You're welcome, Cinderella, now off you go, thank you, and try and stay out of trouble from now on'. I turned to leave the room and breathed a sigh of relief. I had not been punished anywhere near as severely as I had anticipated.

Meanwhile, scally Scouser Luke Mills had his own problems. He was also summoned to see Mr Warr, after pretending he forgot to hand in his cell phone. Mr Warr went into interrogation mode once again. He knew damn well that Mills was laying. 'I don't think there is a smidgen...an iota...a kernel...of truth in what you've said. Have I made myself clear?', he asked. 'Absolutely, Sir', Mills answered. Mr Warr decided to give Mills one more chance to come clean. 'Can I have the truth, please, Mills?', he asked. Mills finally told Mr Warr that he had, indeed taken his phone out in full intention to use it. 'Thank you, Mills. Thank you very much indeed. That's what I wanted to hear. You've basically been dishonest'. As a punishment for his deceit, Mills was given 2 hours' detention and made to copy out sections from the Venerable Bede Ecclesiastical History. He was instructed to go to bed at 8pm, but 2 hours later, he was caught by Mr Warr, still out of bed and fully clothed, while doing a hilarious impersonation of him. 'What am I talking about?! It is not a question!', he bellowed in a Warr-esque fashion. Then, Mr Warr entered the room. 'I thought you were meant to be in bed', he said with a hostile expression. 'Did you not understand my instructions? I said to you earlier today that after prep, you were to go to bed! Why aren't you in bed?!', he demanded to know. 'For no good reason, really', Mills answered. 'Well get in bed!', Mr Warr barked. Mills finally got undressed and into bed. Mr Warr then left the room as Mills remarked 'Oh, I'm screwed'. The other boys looked on, visibly embarrassed. They knew the regime would only get tougher from here on in...


	5. A Sight For Sore Eyes

It was day 4 at Charles Darwin Grammar, and the boys had a new classmate joining them; Joe Seath, a cool cat from South London. He soon became very good friends with all of the boys, and they were relieved to have a new friend after Brennon Gunston's sudden departure 2 days earlier. Matron soon came in to conduct her morning inspection. The boys didn't do so bad, however, there were one or two boys whose bedding was crinkled, and whose uniforms were a little scruffy. One of the boys; Nathan Anidugbe had to have a pair of braces on. Matron remarked 'Now put your blazer on; you'll see how nice you look!', as she walked away with a look of smug satisfaction on her face. But it wasn't long before Mr Williams and and Dr Wilde were back on the warpath. Mr Williams decided to offer the boys a contraband amnesty. 'I am going to give you a once-only offer. I am willing to offer you all a contraband amnesty. If you do not offer up contraband now, when the amnesty is offered, the consequences will be severe'. The boys all kept schtum, apart from two; James Ingram and Prince Kit. Handing over their contraband might have won the teachers over, but the other boys were unimpressed with Ingram.

Every day at Charles Darwin Grammar began with a traditional morning assembly, and today was no exception. Mr Warr had an announcement to make. 'Today, my staff and I will be negotiating on the positions of Head Boy and Head Girl. Those positions carry with them responsibilities and privileges. We are looking for leaders; a leader for the girls and a leader for the boys. Since the beginning of term, the staff had been assessing us for qualities of integrity and authority. In Nightingale Dorm, many of the girls wanted me to become Head Girl, while a few thought that Sally Rushton was a worthy competitor. In Beagle Dorm, the opinion was split; half of the boys wanted James Ingram to become Head Boy, while the other half wanted Kit to earn the title. I personally thought Kit would be an inspired choice for Head Boy. But Kit himself wanted to give Ingram a chance.

Meanwhile, the boys faced a double period of Physics. In the lesson, the boys were to dissect pigs' eyes to find out how they functioned as optical instruments. Once they were set off, the boys were almost immediately engaged. This was the first time the boys had ever done such experiments. Most local authorities in the UK had banned them for fear of upsetting squeamish students. Almost of all the boys were disinterested by the science curriculum at their modern schools, but they were now hooked by some old-fashioned gore. They were now showing newfound enthusiasm and scientific curiosity, much to Dr Wilde's delight. Boys enjoyed getting their hands dirty and were unafraid to admit it. This was a complete contrast to us girls.

During our double period of physics, we dreaded the prospect of dissecting those pigs' eyes. We were all academic high-flyers and consistently outperformed boys in GCSE Science. But in O Level Physics, we had to roll up our sleeves and get slicing. Many of use objected to the idea. Vicar's daughter Vicki Buxton, for instance, started to wretch at the dismembered eyeballs. 'If you're gonna be sick, use the sink', Dr Wilde told her. For Jenny Ritzman and Ruby Lally, the prospect of cutting up an animal was simply too much to bear. Dr Wilde had some harsh words for the two of them. 'You will achieve NOTHING if this is the way you react to every challenge in your lives'. Some of us, on the other hand, like Rapunzel, Belle and I were actually handling it much better. We were starting to closely examine the eyeballs. If they wanted to beat back the boys in their Science O Levels, the girls would have to pull themselves together...


	6. Another Pet Bites The Dust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, we switch over to Belle's perspective as she too falls foul of the regime.

It was lunchtime again at Charles Darwin Grammar. As usual, every meal was challenge for most of us. On the menu that day; meat stew and boiled vegetables. We girls complained just as much as we did with most other meals served at the school. In contrast, the boys were able to see the funny side of it all and joked about the appalling quality of the food. Simon Taylor, for instance, made a statement for the cameras; 'I would've happily lived in the 1950s, foodwise'. Some of the girls were finding the food impossible to cope with. Ashleigh Walters was a shadow of her former self; she was a loud character who always spoke her mind and didn't always stick to the rules. For instance, she had set off 5 fire alarms at her old high school, and threw eggs at teachers. But now, she had been crushed by the Spartan regime of Charles Darwin Grammar School. I on the other hand, tried my best to keep my head down.

And to make matters worse, we all had a whole afternoon of P.E to look forward to. Many of the boys were excited by it; they enjoyed practical learning. The girls, on the other hand, were far too-image conscious to break into a sweat, let alone do a 60-metre marathon. One of the girls; Anna Clift, admitted to not doing P.E at all in high school. Elsa and Anna were two of the few girls willing to partake in the P.E curriculum. Adam and I were also looking forward to it; we were two of the fittest students at the school. For Ashleigh Walters and her friend Holly Dearman, the prospect of P.E was the final straw. They decided to go and see Matron for permission to leave, but she decided to give them some encouragement to stay and whip it all up; 'Now I need you both to listen carefully. If you go, you will regret it hugely. And if people knew you were going through this and knew you were giving up, they would be wondering why the hell you gave up so fast. Are they going to chuck it all in if things don't go right for the first week? I don't think so. This is real character-building stuff, and if you make it through these 4 weeks, they will make such a huge difference to your lives. They really will. Do you understand what I'm saying?'. Ashleigh and Holly both replied 'Yes' reluctantly, and headed back off to P.E.

Back in the 1950s, compulsory competitive sport was seen as character-building. In modern schools, kids rarely did more than 2 hours of P.E a week, and the emphasis was on co-operation instead of competition. But at Charles Darwin Grammar, the slogan was 'Only The Fittest Survive'. 1950s grammar schools prided themselves on their sporting accomplishments and treated unfit students a failures. Kids would spend up to 17 hours a week working off their spam fritters. In stark contrast to today, overweight teenagers were rare in the 1950s. We were all made to do a 60 meter sprint, which just wasn't fair for most of us. As it happened, it wasn't just the fat kids who objected. Amy Jampa-Ngoen decided to put up a fight, but Miss Bryant made her do as much as she could. 'You will continue all the way around there; I don't care if you move on your feet, your hands, on your hands and feet, backwards, sideways, jumping like a kangaroo; you move!', she barked. Amy was nicknamed 'Limpie' by her classmates and had a particular hatred of physical exertion. She ran off in a wild direction away from the other girls. Miss Bryant eventually caught up with Amy and sent her to see Matron. Whilst the girls lacked competitive spirit, the boys were getting a taste for it. Prince Adam enjoyed getting a good sweat on, as did Luke Mills and Prince Kit. But poor old William Ho found it difficult; he never did that much exercise in a week, let alone a day. Meanwhile, Amy was made to wash the boys' dirty shirts as a punishment for shirking in P.E. Amy seemed to understand the concept behind strict punishments; she made a statement for the cameras telling them that 1950s punishments would be more likely to teacher her a lesson.

The kids at Charles Darwin Grammar had to comply with a rigid academic timetable. Even after lessons, they had prep; an hour and 15 minutes of supervised homework, which proved to be a stressful experience for many of us; we were used to planning our own evenings. After prep, we were treated to 45 minutes of free time in the Common Room. It was the only time the girls and boys were allowed to interact with each other...Under the beady eye of Miss Gibson, of course. When it came time to clear up however, we reverted to type and didn't bother to do much cleaning. Unsurprisingly, Miss Gibson was growing increasingly frustrated with our slack 21st Century attitude...Until Mr Williams turned up and got somewhat more co-operation. 'What's that under that chair? It's a book', he snarled at Phil Donald. I carelessly picked up a table tennis bat. 'I just took that off you about a minute ago!', Miss Gibson squawked at me. I didn't take very kindly to this and growled at Miss Gibson 'How dare you squawk at me like that, Miss Flipson'. Little did I know that Mr Warr was outside waiting for me. Mr Williams was incensed at the nickname I had invented for Miss Gibson. 'Get outside, you insolent woman', Mr Williams snarled at me. 'I think your next trip is gonna be to the Headmaster'. And indeed it was. Mr Warr frogmarched me to his office for a good dressing-down.

In Mr Warr's Office, he immediately went on the offensive. 'You were rude to Miss Gibson, Belle; I heard you very clearly, because I've discovered it's a habit among you girls to mock my staff!', he barked at me. 'If I hear another foul word out of you, Belle, you will be on full detention! Do you understand what I'm saying?!'. 'Yes, Sir. I just want to get the hell out of here before I get into more trouble', I answered. He lowered his voice slightly and turned to a much more bitter and solemn tone. 'Your insolence towards Miss Gibson was just profound, and I am stunned. My opinion of you...couldn't have been higher...Prior to this incident, Belle...Couldn't have been higher!'. He then started droning on in his typical stern authoritarian tone to give a wake-up call. 'Stop feeling sorry for yourself; that will be of no value to anyone. You've stepped out of line, and now, instead of following in Brennon Gunston's footsteps and skulking away from the school, the least you can do is to go back to Miss Gibson, as soon as possible and apologize. You are stronger than this, Belle. You *are* capable'. Mr Warr didn't want to destroy me. He could see me putting my hand over my head in shame, and he knew the message had sunk in. He then calmly said 'Off you go', as I moseyed out of the room. I called Mr Warr's bluff. I didn't apologize, but I headed back to Nightingale Dorm and tried to forget about the ordeal. After only 4 days at Charles Darwin Grammar, the relentless regime was starting to get us. We were growing fed up with being treated like children who should be seen but not heard, and our frustration was bound to increase in the days to come...


	7. More Strings To Hold 'Em Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mr Warr elects a Head Boy and Head Girl to whip the student body into shape...As two students turn up late.

The boys of Beagle Dorm may have prized their individuality, but they were starting to enjoy communal dorm life. They all burst into a rousing chorus of the school song; 'As we strive to be the best, we must fight to beat the rest, and we know the journey is a long one where only the strong one can ever take the prize. So let's dedicate our lives, to the brave men who survive, at the school where hard work is rewarded, discipline applauded, the wanted victory-'. Before they could finish, Mr Williams entered the room and ordered bedtime. 'In case you have forgotten, my office, and my quarters were I sleep are directly next to yours. I hear everything that goes on in this dorm. There will be no reading tonight, and when lights go out, I want absolute silence'. Mr Williams left the room and closed the door behind him. The boys were compliant for a moment, and then...'As we strive to be the best, we must fight to beat the rest, and we know the journey is a long one where only the strong one can ever take the prize. So let's dedicate our lives, to the bra-'. Mr Williams burst back in. As a punishment for singing after lights out, the boys were taken outside in their pyjamas and made to stand in the open air for 20 minutes. Wannabe Head Boy Prince Kit decided he'd had enough of taking orders. Mr Williams approached him and asked 'Are you ready to go to bed without talking?'. With a smug expression, Kit replied 'I'm sure everyone else would like to stand here, but I can't get to sleep, so I might as well go for a jog, Sir. Now, please, not in the morning'. Mr Williams was quick to take action. 'You have earnt your first detention from me', he said with a stern expression, as he took note of Kit's name. 'And by the way, tell Mr Warr that Ingram would be a better Head Boy; I don't give a damn'. 'I will tell him, but he will not be impressed', Mr Williams snarled back at Kit. Concerned about potential punishment, Kit waited until Mr Williams, and the cameras, had turned away and did a runner, taking Luke Mills with him, along with his rival, James Ingram.

As Mr WIlliams ushered the other boys back inside, he then noticed three of them had deserted. He was quick to alert Matron. The boys sprinted up the terrace and suddenly ran into Vicki Buxton and Ashleigh Walters. They had broken out of Nightingale Dorm and were attempting to raid Beagle Dorm. The boys told the girls to go away as Mr Williams had caught sight of them. He could not see who it was, but he knew there were two girls. As Vicki and Ashleigh dashed back over to Nightingale Dorm, the three male deserters followed suit, but not before Cinderella burst out. She had clearly gotten caught in the heat of the moment. Hearing the ensuing commundrum, Mr Stanley burst into Nightingale Dorm just as Sally Rushton slammed the French windows shut. He then realized who had left and dashed out to the front to cut the deserters off. The four deserters were about to reach the car park, until Mr Stanley and Mr Williams appeared in their path. 'You have all earned yourselves a detention each for attempting to leave without the Headmaster's consent!', Mr Stanley barked at us. 'You are all to report to Mr Warr tomorrow morning, now get back to your dorms!'. They all headed back inside and got back in bed. They of course, weren't the only ones in trouble. Vicki Buxton and Ashleigh Walters were also caught trying to raid Beagle Dorm.

The following morning, Ariel and Eric turned up. They had arrived four days late and had to report immediately to Mr Warr. He was in a relatively calm mood, although he still had a stern warning for them. 'Stand in front of me, please, Ariel. You as well, Eric', he said, as they entered the room. 'Now, you have both reported to this school 4 days late, and I am of course, unimpressed, and also mildly concerned about your progress. You will both have quite a bit of catching up to do, and I think you should both be aware that the lesson space is extremely tight. You will be subjected to 40 hours of teaching per week, so I feel I should give you a heads-up. In addition, I feel you ought to know that we have already reported at least 3 disciplinary issues among your fellow princes and princesses, and we may have a fourth one floating around, so I must ask you both, for your own good, to stay out of trouble, if and when it occurs. You are both to report to Matron, who will give you a thorough inspection and issue you with your uniforms and equipment. You will then join the rest of the school for breakfast in the dining room. Do you both understand?'. 'Yes Sir', they both answered. 'Alright, off you go, Mr Warr replied, as they both left the room to see Matron. They were both already wondering what they had let themselves in for.

Meanwhile, after their disruptive behaviour the previous night, the boys were still half-asleep, but the three deserters had something else on their minds; the prospect of expulsion. Cinderella, meanwhile, was also feeling apprehensive about facing the wrath of Mr Warr again. In an effort to avoid a potential roasting, they all met on the terrace before breakfast to discuss their next move. Cinderella was the first to speak up; it wasn't the first time she had been in trouble. 'I think we'd better own up to trying to leave, boys. We could be punished even more harshly if we don't'. Being a suck-up and a teacher's pet, her beloved Prince Kit was quick to concur, along with James Ingram and Luke Mills. Being front-runners for Head Boy, James and Kit knew they had more to lose than their classmates, and Cinderella knew damn well she was on thin ice, and although Luke wasn't a Head Boy candidate, it wasn't the first time Mr Williams had caught him red-handed. They immediately asked to see Mr Williams and Mr Stanley. 'Now, we would like to apologize to you for our attempt to leave this property last night. We all let our homesickness get to us, and we know we shouldn't have done so', Cinderella told them. 'And I would also like to own up for my rudeness, Sir; I also let my desperation get the better of me'. 'Alright, you accept your apology. Of course, some action will still need to be taken as a result, but we will inform the Headmaster that you have owned up', Mr Williams informed them. He then went to Mr Warr's Office to fill him in on the entire incident. Shortly after breakfast, the four deserters were all called in.

Mr Warr was still surprisingly calm. He did, however, have a bluff for the deserters. 'Had you managed to leave the school property, you would all be taken straight back to your dorms and thrown out; had you stepped over the property line. Without a shadow of a doubt, you would all be on your way home'. Cinderella knew he was bluffing, but she thought it was pretty good bluff. 'I am conscious that it is only the first week of term, and your homesickness is getting to you. I am therefore willing to wipe the slate clean, having heard your apology, because I am confident that none of you will repeat such an error of judgement. Mills, and Tremaine, you may leave. Ingram, stay here, please, you as well, Cinderella. As Luke and Kit left the room, James and Cinderella were kept behind. Mr Warr had a surprise for them. 'Now, I am aware that you were bothy only involved in this incident because you were caught up in the heat of the moment, and I am aware you wish to make amends to this situation. I also understand that you are both candidates for Head Girl, and Head Boy. I am therefore going to keep your names in consideration for assembly, when those positions are to be bestowed. In the meantime, just try and stay out of trouble from now on and do your best'. 'Thank you, Sir', Cinderella said with a sigh of relief, as she and James left the room.

In morning assembly, Mr Warr made his announcement. 'I am absolutely delighted to announce the names of the new Head Boy and Head Girl at this prestigious school. Our new Head Girl is Cinderella'. A delighted Cinderella stepped forward to take her Head Girl badge. There was an uproar of cheers from almost all of the boys and girls. Only Scott Peters and Vicki Buxton kept silent. They were unimpressed. 'And our Head Boy for this term is James Ingram', Mr Warr added. Kit was impressed with James becoming Head Boy, but a little disappointed; he had hoped to become Head Boy himself. But one of the boys was going through an even harder time; Rob Hudson from Harden in West Yorkshire. He was a veteran teenage equestrian and took a great interest in horses. He even once offered to look after Rapunzel's horse Maximus, but Rapunzel kindly turned the offer down. He was convinced he was a front-runner for Head Boy, but Mr Warr had a knack for attempting to give troublemakers responsibilities to give them a chance for reform. Cinderella received rapturous applause from the crowd, and James Ingram had regained his credibility among his dorm mates. But vicar's daughter Vicki Buxton now had something else on her mind. Earlier that day, she had been summoned to see Matron to see if she had any part in the previous night's dorm raid, but she denied it. Feeling guilty, she now felt the need to fess up to sneaking out. Her time at Charles Darwin Grammar was on the line...


	8. Sorting The Wheat From The Chaff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this particular chapter, we switch over to Anna's perspective, as more and more students fall foul of homesickness and the restrictions of 1950s life, and more cracks in the modern education system are exposed.

After morning assembly, the Boys had English. Miss Gibson was unimpressed with our work so far and decided to take us back to the basics of 1950s technical accuracy. In today's English lessons, the emphasis is on self-expression, but back in the 50s, the emphasis was around spelling, punctuation and grammar. To do this, they were made to undertake a dictation test, where Miss Gibson read out a text, and the kids copied it out. First to be called up to the board was Sebastian Jefford, predicted a B in GCSE English. He was made to write on the board 'The bachelor reflected on his one rule in life, after doubt the word of a man of the cloth. He decided on a subtler approach. Jefford spelt 'bachelor' wrong. He spelt it as 'bachalor'. It took Jefford three attempts before he finally got it right. Meanwhile, in the Girls' English lesson, guinea pig lover Jenny Ritzman, predicted an A in English, made the same mistake, spelling bachelor as 'batchular'. 'Pretty much every letter was wrong there', Miss Gibson remarked. It took at least another three attempts for Jenny to finally spell 'bachelor' right, one of which wound up with her writing 'baclaw'. Jenny had also misspelt the word 'subtler'. Ruby Lally, also predicted an A, was called up, but she misspelt it as 'sutteler'. Clever-clogs Sam Wyvill, predicted an A*, was then called up, and she finally spelled subtler correctly.

Meanwhile, a guilty Vicki Buxton decided to confess to her part in the previous night's dorm raid. After Matron informed Mr Warr of Vicki's confession, she was immediately summoned to his office, and went into an long, incoherent tirade. 'YOU ARE A LIAR, VICTORIA BUXTON! YOU HAVE BLATANTLY DECEIVED MYSELF, YOU HAVE DECEIVED MATRON, AND YOU HAVE DECEIVED THE WHOLE OF NIGHTINGALE DORM! YOU CLAIMED IT WAS JUST YOU WHO SNEAKED ALONG THAT TERRACE, AND TRIED TO BREAK INTO THE BOYS' DORMITORY, WHEN WE KNEW THERE WERE TWO OF YOU! THERE IS NOT A SMIDGEN...THERE IS NOT AN IOTA OF TRUTH IN WHAT YOU HAVE TOLD US! YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN THE WHOLE OF NIGHTINGALE DORM PUNISHED, AND ONLY NOW...ONLY NOW HAVE YOU CONFESSED?! WHAT AN ABSOLUTE TRAVESTY! YOU ARE EVEN WORSE THAN RAPUNZEL, VICTORIA! YOU HAVE TRIED TO TAKE THE BLAME FOR SOMEONE ELSE'S MISDEMEANOR, AND YOU HAVE ALSO FAILED TO CONFESS YOUR OWN!'. Mr Warr then took a deep breath to calm his nerves before he exploded again. 'Alright, I'm going to give you one more chance to tell me who the other person was, and if you refuse to identify the other culprit, I will have no choice but to exclude you from Charles Darwin Grammar with immediate effect'. Vicki finally turned in Ashleigh Walters. Mr Warr bowed his head, in an effort to prevent another potential outburst. 'Leave the room, please, Victoria, otherwise I'm worried I'm going to become permanently angry', he mumbled, trying his best to keep his anger in check in the face of Vicki's act of deception.

As a punishment for trying to sneak into Beagle Dorm, Vicki and Ashleigh would made to scrub the terrace that afternoon. Vicki was now starting to become overwhelmed by the 1950s regime. She was starting to wonder how much longer she would survive under Simon Warr's reign of terror. He was willing to cut Ashleigh Walters a little slack, but he promised to keep a closer eye on Vicki Buxton. Meanwhile, the kids were about to go head-to-head in a debating society. Mr Warr excluded Vicki Buxton from taking part, as a punishment for lying. Miss Gibson, who had now earnt the spiteful nickname of 'Miss Flipson', explained the rules of the debate. 'We're going to see who's better at rhetoric; the boys or the girls. Rhetoric is not about shouting, it's about crafting a persuasive argument'. The boys opted for a civilised, democratic approach when selecting their speakers. The first speaker to be selected was Head Boy James Ingram, and the second was John Kemple. The girls, on the other hand, took an altogether different approach, and got into a nasty argument. We Princesses stood our ground and selected me, Anna, but the other girls just didn't seem to be able to select a second candidate. In the end, Miss Gibson had to step in. 'Ladies, I'm going to count down from 5, and by the time I get to 1, I need a second candidate. 5, 4, 3...'. Thankfully, the girls finally selected Sam Wyvill, before Miss Gibson could finish counting.

After we finally selected our speakers and rehearsed our arguments, we all entered the fray. Mr Williams and Miss Gibson were both sitting on the stage alongside us, with Mr Warr watching from the back. Miss Gibson explained the rules of the debate; 'The Balloon Debate works on the premise that there is a hot air balloon, and it's going down. Inside this balloon are four famous people from history, and only one can survive'. Each of us would have to argue the case for our historical figure. Sam and I were championing two figures from the arts, while the boys were advocating two famous scientists. The first to argue their case was Sam Wyvill. 'Everyone knows a tune by Mozart, which is Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'. Next was John Kemple. 'Albert Einstein was the greatest mind in the world; he dedicated mor of his life to science than anybody else'. Next, Anna. 'Walt Disney was a mastermind in storytelling and entertainment; he revolutionised the film, animation and amusement park industries in some of the most magical ways ever witnessed on this planet'. And finally, James Ingram. 'Psychology; the most austere neurological science there is, and fathered mainly by who I'm studying today; Sigmund Freud'. After each round, the kids voted to remove two speakers from the contest. Einstein and Mozart both had to take a backseat. The contest was now a two-horse race between me and James Ingram. James stepped forward to make his next argument. 'Everyone, look around this room now and try and find something which science hasn't helped create. I dare you'. I made my counter argument. 'A world without science is not the debate; Freud didn't create science and he wasn't a scientist. He studied the mind. Everything Walt Disney created was done from scratch'. 'I'm sure Walt Disney could create a great animated film based on a European fairy tale like Cinderella or Rapunzel, but I would prefer to have someone get into my mind and tell me things I've never heard before'. 'Out of your mouth could have come silence, James, if we didn't have Disney because he himself introduced a whole generation to these tales, and to the theme park industry, so you wouldn't be able to make any argument against him in the first place, or even talk to Freud about him'. James then came back with pretty brutal response. 'I don't think that argument could help Disney to survive this savage balloon dropping'. I had the final word; 'The 'Savage Balloon Dropping'? That sentence may have taken something taken from one of Walt Disney's stories, but I'm gonna finish now; I don't think I need to say anything more'. The final votes were cast, and Miss Gibson soon announced the result. 'With 17 votes; Freud. With 22 votes; Walt Disney'. I won in the end. For modern teenagers unused to public speaking, we had all performed with surprising flare, but the result revealed a handful of traitors in both dorms. Luke Mills, noticed the girls' constant bickering and in-fighting and he had to tell them 'Sorry to go with the Scouse stereotype here, but calm down, calm down'.

Meanwhile, Vicki Buxton and Ashleigh Walters were both forced to scrub the terrace they were caught sneaking along. They both hated it vehemently, but Matron was unsympathetic. She and Mr Warr would go to any lengths to keep their spartan regime intact. And Matron would keep a closer eye on Ashleigh Walters from here on in; she had already tried to talk her way out of four weeks of gruelling education, but to no avail. On Sunday, it was the end of the first week of term. We all had a long lie-in and a traditional English breakfast, and now came the time we were all waiting for; letters from home. Mr Warr entered Beagle Dorm with the boys' letters. Only 6 boys received mail; James Ingram, Prince Kit, William Ho, Simon Taylor, Luke Mills and newcomer Joe Seath. It was a disappointing morning for the other boys. Rob Hudson and Sebastian Jefford were especially disappointed at the lack of mail, but they tried their best not to let it overtake them. We girls, on the other hand, weren't even trying to keep stiff upper-lips. Only 6 of us; me, Cinderella, Sally Rushton, Jessica Boulton, Sam Wyvill and Jenny Ritzman received letters, and we were all in tears, particularly Jenny. Sally made a comment for the cameras that 'You don't really think about it at all until it's actually written down on paper and you can see your parents' handwriting. And the emotion was even worse for those who didn't get any mail. The most devestated of all was Amy Jampa-Ngoen. She was starting to feel guilty for being such a bad daughter prior to applying for That'll Teach 'Em, and was shell-shocked that there was no good luck message for her. After reading our letters, we were sent to the classrooms to write our replies. It was the first time many of us had ever written a letter home, and it brought out unexpected emotions. The boys, despite having only been at Charles Darwin Grammar for a week, the boys seemed to have learned that absence made the heart grow fonder. The girls were also starting to change and gain maturity. Perhaps the That'll Teach 'Em experiment was paying off. We still had three weeks to go before our O Levels, and only time would tell whether we truly gained anything from our experience...


	9. Us VS Them

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the students enter the second week of term; new troublemakers arise from the ashes, as yet another Princess loses her reputation.

We were now over a week into term; but the early mornings weren't getting any easier, especially not for the boys. When Mr Williams came in to wake up the boys, he bellowed 'Rise and shine, boys! And by 'shine, I really do mean shine your shoes!'. This could only mean one thing; the age old shoe-polishing technique of spit-and-polish. The boys and girls were now competing in almost every aspect of school life; from the cleanliness of their shoes to the neatness of their hospital corners. We girls were fighting to ensure not a hair was out of place; after a shaky first few days as Head Girl, Cinderella was eager to impress Matron during her morning inspection. Matron had x-ray eyes and could detect crinkly sheets THROUGH blankets. She was even more of stickler than Mr Warr and could spot even the most miniscule slip-up. After a tense 10 minutes, Cinderella awaited the result. Her dorm the full possible score of 5 points, and she had really pulled us all together.

So, how would the boys do? In Beagle Dorm, Matron came across some of the most ridiculous mistakes; cheeky Chiswikian Michael Petkov had not made his bed properly; the entire mattress was wrinkled. Nathan Anidugbe had his fly open, William Ho and Sebastian Jefford had their top buttons undone, and Catford criminal Scott Peters hadn't even bothered to tuck his shirt in or pull up his trousers. 'Pull your trousers up and tuck your shirt in', Matron ordered. He did so slowly. 'Pull your trousers up and tuck your shirt in, and take that smirk off your face, Peters'. He didn't even bother to remove the smirk and just asked 'When will you be satisfied, Matron?'. 'Tuck it in PROPERLY, or do you need me to do it for you?!', she yelled. Only Luke Mills, Chris Hedley, John Kemple, Prince Kit, Prince Eugene and Head Boy James Ingram were immaculately dressed. They only earned 1 point. Not even Rob Hudson could get a proper 1950s look. After the disastrous inspection, Peters had some pretty harsh words for Ingram. 'Oh, for God's sake, Ingram, you've gotten the whole bloody dorm in trouble'. Kit decided to stand up for James. 'No, he hasn't Scott; your bed was crinkly, mine was completely smooth', he said firmly. 'And mine as well,' Eugene added. 'And we all had our flies done up properly', James continued. An outraged Nathan barked 'Oh, for God's sake, Jimmy, you're on the side of the bloody teachers!'. 'You try too hard!', Sebastian Jefford added. 'Oh, come on, cut him a little break, he's only doing what he's told!', Joe Seath yelled. 'Yes, and it was the Headmaster's choice to elect me!', James added. 'Well as far as I'm concerned, it's irrelevant who to blame, now!', Scott retorted. 'Oh, come on, Peters, just let us do our jobs', Prince Eric requested, in an effort to settle the matter. 'DON'T CALL ME PETERS!', Scott erupted. Before long, the whole dorm descended into chaos. Many of the boys were blaming themselves for slipping up, in spite of James' efforts, but Scott, Nathan and Sebastian all came up with a new strategy; blame everything on James Ingram. Mr Williams heard the commotion and immediately suspected Peters had a part in it. He burst in and slammed the door open. An eerie silence descended. 'Peters, you have earnt a detention. Ingram is only trying to do his job, now cut him a break. Anyone else who had a part in this, I would strongly advise you to step forward, otherwise the whole of Beagle Dorm will be punished'. Nathan and Sebastian stepped forward to confess. They then Scott moseyed outside in defeat. Detention awaited them.

Meanwhile, after the boys' disastrous inspection, we all headed off to morning assembly. After a week of wearing uniforms, a scruffy appearance was now unacceptable. True to form, one of the boys was letting the side down. Hugh Gilroy was caught with his top button undone. While the rest of the kids headed off to breakfast, Gilroy was summoned to Mr Williams' office; he had a unique way of enforcing the school's dress code. Gilroy was made to run to his dorm, change neatly into his pyjamas and then run back to Mr Williams for inspection. If he was acceptably dressed, he would then be ordered to change into his uniform to be inspected, and the process would continue until Gilroy's appearance was immaculate. Indeed, Gilroy did have to repeat the entire process several times over. It wasn't until he'd attempted to get dressed at least 5 times, that his appearence was finally deemed acceptable. He was then finally allowed to go to breakfast.

One of our hardest lessons so far came near the end of the day; both the boys and the girls had a Maths lesson with Miss Carter. They were made to do long division without a calculator. Boys at the time excelled in GCSE Maths, but they were lost without their pocket calculators. One boy, Qadeer Razaque from Sheffield, had never done long division before, despite going to high school for the previous five years. Sebastian Jefford was then called up. Although Jefford was familiar with the concept, he could not even begin the question. Us Girls, bar the Princesses of course, were no better. If we failed to grasp the arithmetic abilities expected of 16 year-olds, then math in the UK at large was in a worse state, with almost half of all adults lacking the skills for even the lowest GCSE pass. There was obviously a long way to go if we wanted to pass our O Levels. After the lesson, Corrine Stewart from South London had a statement for the cameras; 'I've never had to do long division on paper. I can't remember the last time I actually did division on paper'.

We may have been struggling academically, but the behaviour in our single-sex classes that day had been exemplary. With lessons over for the day, we now had our first joint activity; a rehearsal for our end-of-term performance of Gilbert And Sullivan's opera, the Mikado. So, would the distraction of the opposite sex affect our concentration? Unfortunately, it most certainly did. Some of the girls were already finding it funny. 'Stop talking, girls!', Miss Gibson squawked at us. Once the teachers had silence, we all started singing. 'For, he's going to marry Yum-Yum! Yum-Yum! Your anger pray bury, for all will be merry; I think you had better succumb! Cumb-cumb!'. Miss Gibson and Mr Stanley started spotting some of us showing off to the boys, particularly Vicki Buxton, Amy Jampa-Ngoen, Ariel, Belle and Elsa. 'We've got some of you girls thinking this is all just a great big joke. I will not have you ruining this', Mr Stanley told us sternly. 'I suggest that the back row of girls come down to the front where we can see them; they've been causing all the disruption so far', Miss Gibson added. The entire back row was drafted up to the front of the room, but Elsa, who vehemently hated Miss Gibson, now wanted to leave the class. It was now an ingrained habit in her to call the teachers spiteful nicknames. 'I've had enough of this! You, Jeanette Flipson are the worst, I repeat, the worst teacher in this school, even worse than Mr Warrlord!'. Mr Stanley erupted at Elsa. 'HOW DARE YOU CALL US THOSE HORRIBLE NAMES!', he shrieked. 'SHUT YOUR FAT MOUTH, YOU STUPID LITTLE GIRL!'. Before long, Mr Stanley was getting in Elsa's face. 'YOU STUPID, INSOLENT, SILLY LITTLE THING! GET OUT!'. Elsa moseyed out, pulling up a rude hand gesture at Miss Gibson. She was handed over to Mr Warr's to be punished for her insolence.

Back inside, the other girls' behaviour hadn't improved. Mr Stanley stopped playing a second time to have a go at Elsa's remaining cohorts. 'Girls, if I turn round once more and see you mucking around, then I will be furious'. Miss Gibson berated us once again by saying 'I'm not having every rehearsal like this; because it will KILL me'. There was stony silence for a moment, and then one of the girls was heard to remark 'Good'. A shuddered Miss Gibson looked to her left and asked the voice to identify herself. 'Which of you said that?', she asked. After a brief pause, the culprit stepped forward. It was Ariel, who as Mr Stanley remarked, had 'been selected as a principal part'. It was the final straw for Miss Gibson. 'At the moment, girls, I am honestly starting to wonder why we should give up our free time to give you something enjoyable', Miss Gibson grumbled again. Unable to take anymore, she hurried out of the room, leaving Mr Stanley to hold the fort. He stepped forward to take Amy, Belle and Vicki to task, as Cinderella and I watched in astonishment at Ariel, horrified by her rudeness. He then noticed Belle smirking and turned his wrath onto her. 'Get that smirk off your face, Belle, because you're one of the top people on my list', he growled. 'NO, SIR! YOU TEACHERS THINK YOU'RE GODS, BUT YOU'RE JUST CONTROL FREAKS!', Belle, spat in his face. 'THIS IS GROSS INSOLENCE! HOW DARE YOU?!', he retorted. 'GET OUT OF MY CLASS!'. Belle then legged it over to Mr Warr's office to join Ariel and Elsa. Mr Stanley then took the opportunity to lecture the girls en masse. 'We are trying to teach you the music for Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado, and all you can do is disrupt! Laugh! Be pathetic! We've already had Elsa thrown out, and we've now had Ariel and Belle sent to the Headmaster's Office. If I see anymore disruption, the consequences will be severe. Is that understood?'. We all replied 'Yes, Sir'. With the musical miscreants now out of the way, Mr Stanley could finally continue normally with the rehearsal, albeit without Miss Gibson.

Mr Warr was trying his best to suppress his anger at Belle, Elsa and Ariel. He seemed more disappointed than irate. 'Girls, girls, girls, I can't believe this', he remarked. 'You've caused genuine psychological harm to not one, but two members of my staff, and you were rude and insubordinate towards them. I cannot believe this, especially not you Ariel, after only four days you've already rebelled. I'm going to have to hand you two over to Matron. She'll know how best to punish you. The first time I've had three rebels standing in my office for a serious offence You two are already on thin ice. Just keep yourselves under control from now on. Do you understand?'. 'Yes, Sir', they replied. 'Alright, off you go', he murmured. The Disney Princesses were now being picked off one by one, and everyone was now in the firing line. The three musical miscreants were all handed over to Matron. Since corporal punishment had been made illegal in all public schools in England and Wales in the mid 80s, they were forced to endure an equally gruelling alternative; chores. They were now something of Cinderella clones. Ariel was made to do gardening, Elsa was made to do ironing, and Belle was ordered to polish Matron's silverware. Ariel later wrote an apology letter to Miss Gibson, and delivered it to her. Miss Gibson appreciated it, but wanted to know her motivations. 'I've also been trying to think what might have made you say such a hurtful thing. I suspect it came out of your mouth before you thought. If that isn't the case, tell me now, please'. 'It just came out of my mouth', Ariel began to answer. 'Before you thought?', Miss Gibson asked. Ariel nodded her head. 'I understand I hurt your feelings and I'm sorry'. 'I appreciate your apology, Ariel'. After lessons we all started talking about our individual disciplinary incidents, and felt that we had all learnt something from them. Perhaps 50s discipline was finally starting to have a positive impact on us...


	10. Stirring Up Rebellion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We now approach the halfway point in the series. With all the Disney Princesses now in the firing line, vicar's daughter Vicki Buxton and her partner-in-crime Scott Peters make an unexpected move against the staff of Charles Darwin Grammar. We now switch over to Prince Eugene's perspective...

After a day of disruptive behaviour from the girls, some of the kids were now becoming desperate for release. During the half-hour period of free time after lessons, Vicki Buxton and Scott Peters came up with a plan to get revenge on Mr Stanley for throwing out Belle, Ariel and Elsa, and also to remove James Ingram and Cinderella from their positions as Head Boy and Head Girl. They organised a petition and tried to get as many signatures as possible. Scott and Vicki, after half an hour of covert persuasion, got 8 signatures; Nathan Anidugbe, Sebastian Jefford, Qadeer Razaque, Rob Hudson, Emily Williams, Ashleigh Walters, Amy Jampa-Ngoen, and of course, Queen Elsa. Despite being a genuinely good and mild-mannered teenager, Hudson was keen to sign the petition in his desperation to snatch back the position of Head Boy. Scott and Vicki's activities started to arouse suspicion, particularly among some of the girls. Rapunzel and I were talking to James Ingram and Sally Rushton regarding the petition. 'What're Scott and Vicki up to?', she asked. 'I think they might be creating some kind of petition in opposition against the Head', I said suspiciously. 'I don't think Peters would go *that* far', James added.

As they marched to the Head's office to deliver the petition, they blatantly started singing the satirical rock song 'Another Brick In The Wall', by Pink Floyd. 'We don't need no education! We don't need no thought control! No dark sarcasm in the classrooms! Teachers, leave us kids alone! Hey, teachers, leave us kids alone! All in all it's just another brick in the wall! All in all we're just another brick in the wall!', they bellowed. When Matron delivered the petition to Mr Warr, he was furious. 'They want to remove Mr Stanley from the school?! AND CINDERELLA?! AND INGRAM AS WELL?! WHAT A SPITEFUL THING TO DO!', he thundered. 'I AM CALLING AN ASSEMBLY, AND I WILL PICK OUT THOSE WHO SIGNED THIS PETITION; THEY HAD THE AUDACITY TO CHALLENGE MY AUTHORITY AS THE HEAD OF CHARLES DARWIN GRAMMAR!'. We were all getting ready for bed, and many of us were shuddered by Mr Warr's unexpected fury, but James and Cinderella were fairly confident it had absolutely nothing to do with them.

The following morning, Mr Warr called an assembly over the petition being darted around the previous night. He reserved his wrath for those who signed it. 'I would like the following to stand up and form two lines next to each aisle, in alphabetical order; Elsa Agnarr, Nathan Anidugbe, Victoria Buxton, Robert Hudson, Amy Jampa-Ngoen, Sebastian Jefford, Scott Peters, Qadeer Razaque, Ashleigh Walters, and Emily Williams. He then went into yet another rampage. 'ALL TEN OF YOU ARE IN SERIOUS TROUBLE! YOU HAVE SIGNED A PETITION, WHICH EFFECTIVELY STRIPS JAMES INGRAM AND ELLA TREMAINE OF THEIR POSITIONS OF HEAD BOY AND HEAD GIRL! THEY ARE A PAIR OF MILD, DECENT, INTELLIGENT STUDENTS, AND THEY HAVE DEDICATED THEIR LIVES TO THIS SCHOOL! AND YOU....YOU HAD THE EFFRONTERY TO DO THIS TO THEM! AND EVEN WORSE, YOU LAUNCHED A MALICIOUS PERSONAL VENDETTA AGAINST OUR MUSIC TEACHER MR STANLEY! HE HAS DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, I REPEAT, NOTHING TO DESERVE THIS! AND WORST OF ALL, YOU, HUDSON! YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO PUT YOUR NAME ON THAT GODFORSAKEN LIST, AND TAKE AN ACTIVE PART IN THIS MOCKERY OF MY AUTHORITY?! HOW DARE YOU?! HOW VERY, VERY DARE YOU?!'. After his psychotic explosion, Mr Warr tried to compose himself again. 'Those who signed that petition will receive a 2-hour detention with Mr Williams, starting immediately after assembly, and you will each right a 125 word essay on the importance of discipline in schools. Mr Williams, take them away, please'. And so, during breakfast, and lasting through the boys' Chemistry lesson with Dr Szydlo, the culprits were forced to write their essay.

During the girls' detention, the boys had a Chemistry lesson. Chemistry was always popular with the boys in the 50s, and not so popular with the girls. In this lesson, Dr Szydlo was performing some dramatic experiments involving fuming Nitric acid. Experiments using such volatile chemicals are rarely performed in modern schools, but were a standard part of the Chemistry O Level. The 1950s were a decade of invention and exploration, and grammar schools were the breeding grounds for future scientists. Pupils were treated as adults and the experiments often contained an experiment of risk. But, teachers believed giving students this level of responsibility was the right way to give them a lifelong passion for science. He burnt some cotton with the bunsen burner to demonstrate the light reaction of cotton with a limited amount of oxygen. He then used some nitrated cotton, which had a much more spectacular effect. We were all amazed by this. Simon Taylor had a comment to make for the cameras; 'Safety just doesn't really matter, here. You can do whatever you want'. Kit and I were also amazed at the level of freedom we were given at Charles Darwin Grammar. But when the girls were shown the same experiment, their frustration was getting in the way of work. They were staging a silent protest after the girls who signed the petition were punished. At one point Dr Szydlo said 'I can see some girls aren't looking this way. You are foolish in the extreme'. As usual, Vicki and Elsa were at the vanguard of the troublemakers. In an effort to ensure the girls were concentrating, Dr Szydlo designed to ask what 2 experiments he had conducted during the lesson. Any girl who was unable to answer would end up in detention with Dr Wilde, writing a 250 word essay on 'The Importance Of Paying Attention In Class'. The entire class, having clearly let their frustration get the better of them, were kept in, with the exception of Belle, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Anna, Sally Rushton, Kayleigh Durman, Jessica Boulton, and Sam Wyvill.

Shortly after Chemistry, the boys had another Biology lesson with Mr Williams. This time, we were familiarising ourselves with the anatomy of a rabbit, to enrich our knowledge of that of a human body. We were all given our own rabbits to dissect, and Mr Williams was confident we would be enthused. True to form, the gory nature of this task appealed to our taste for the macabre. Some of us such as Scott Peters and William Ho were butchering their rabbits almost carelessly, whereas other boys like James Ingram and Joe Seath were taking more time and proceeding with surgical care. In the girls' Biology lesson, however, they didn't exhibit any such enthusiasm. As soon as Mr Williams lifted the sheet off the first rabbit, many of the backed away in horror, and once again, Jenny Ritzman and Ruby Lally couldn't bear harming animals like this, and so they walked out of the lab and took refuge in Nightingale Dorm. Mr Williams told them that such sentimentality would cost them dearly in their exams, and that they should try to overcome their squeamishness, but they refused to take part. Rather than sending them to see Mr Warr for insubordination, Mr Williams caved in and focussed on the remaining girls, most of whom, including the Princesses, were now handling the task very well and were now dissecting much more carefully than the boys, much to Mr Williams' delight. Perhaps 1950s teaching was finally changing their 21st Century attitude to Science. Things were now looking much brighter for most students...

**Side Note**

[Another Brick In The Wall (with lyrics)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN5Z28Dfl7o)


	11. Rebels Will Be Rebels

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the boys progress through their second week at Charles Darwin Grammar School, frustration begins to spill over, and some of the better behaved boys turn back to their rebellious old ways. This could spell trouble for Head Boy James Ingram...

Once lessons were over, the last activity of the afternoon for the boys came at a very opportune time to keep them from following in the girls' footsteps. Back in the 1950s, many grammar schools ran a Combined Cadet Force (CCF for short), and Charles Darwin Grammar was no exception. This was designed to instil discipline and uniformity among the male pupils. They would be under the leadership of Sergeant Alastair Rae from the Royal Logistics Corps. 'My name is Sergeant Rae. I've been dragged out of my bed, and for the rest of this term to teach you people drill. I will work hard for you, as long as you work hard for me'. And so the boys, started marching. But Sergeant Rae found it to be very ragged and sent them running up and down the field. 'Come on, harder!', he yelled. But once again, Scott Peters was dragging his heels. He was told to tuck his shirt in and take the smirk off his face. 'If you don't take that bloody smirk off your face, Peters, I will wipe it off for you'. But Peters refused to listen. 'Shout at me all you want, Sir'. 'GET HIM OVER TO THE HEADMASTER'S OFFICE!', he told Mr Williams.

And so, Peters was sent to see Mr Warr again, and as usual, he went on the offensive. 'You will do CCF whether you like it or not, Peters! It is a part of the school curriculum, and every single student must comply! If you wish not to comply, the consequences will be severe! Is that understood?!'. 'Yes, Sir', Peters replied with a sullen expression. 'Get him back on that parade square and tell him to apologize to the Sergeant!', Mr Warr ordered Mr Williams, as Peters was frogmarched back outside. Peters offered a very lukewarm apology to Sergeant Rae, and Mr Williams forced compliance. 'Peters, I know an apology when I see one, and what I saw was NOT an apology! What I saw was insolence! The words that came out may have been an apology, but the sentiment and the meaning were nowhere near an apology! Get back in that line and get on with it!'. Peters' behaviour may have gone unchecked in 2005, but discipline in the 1950s was unbending and relentless. Sergeant Rae then forced all the boys to run across the field as a punishment for Peters' rudeness. But despite the fact that the rest of the boys were suffering on his behalf, Peters just didn't get it. And Sarnt Rae was forced to throw him out once again.

Whilst the boys, minus Peters were being toughened up to defend their Queen and Country, the girls were being turned into young ladies, in Miss Bryant's Deportment Class. Some of the girls were taking it more seriously than others. Vicki Buxton, as usual, thought it was all just a laugh, and many of the girls just couldn't contain themselves when attempting to do proper introductions to each other, and everyone hated the final part of the lesson, where the girls were forced to walk around with books on their heads, to supposedly improve their posture. Jessica Boulton didn't see any point in this, as he could not see how this would help her in life outside Charles Darwin School. Back on the parade square, meanwhile, only Scott Peters remained. His punishment for refusing to do CCF was a 1950s favourite; being made to stand in full uniform holding a book in each outstretched hand for 30 minutes. His time was extended to 45 minutes when he flicked up a rude hand gesture at Sergeant Rae. Peters may have thought he'd won, but his insolent ways didn't faze the unbending staff at Charles Darwin Grammar. Mr Williams made a statement for the cameras; 'He is not a stupid boy. He *can* produce work, and he *is* capable of understanding. Whether or not that culturally fits him is another matter. Taking the stance on the CCF was perhaps one attempt at doing that, and it failed'.

A new day dawned over Charles Darwin Grammar, and the boys were once again paying the price for Peters' behaviour the previous day. So, Matron was now scrutinizing their every move, and she had a nose for trouble. During the boys' morning inspection, she noticed Hugh Gilroy smelt more sweet than usual. His excuse was that he as a more thorough washer than some of the other boys. She also noticed Luke Mills' armpits smelling ugly and reminded him that she had a very sensitive nose. In spite of these errors, the boys dorm scores massively improved; perhaps the continual punishments were paying off. But, frustration and homesickness were now driving some of the older and better behaved boys into the path of temptation. Some of them sneaked into Matron's laundry where there happened to be a telephone. The first to make a call was Head Boy James Ingram, who really should've known better than to phone without Mr Warr's consent. 'Hi, it's James. I'm sorry to call you at such a ridiculous time but I'm just getting really homesick'. On the other end of the phone, James' dad said 'I think you'd better hang up before you get caught'. James quickly hung up. Kit then made a call to the King, but the boys alerted him that Mr Williams was on the prowl. James came up with a quick excuse; 'We needed to wash our trousers, Sir'. Mr Williams yielded to his reason; 'You shouldn't be in there, boys. Matron will deal with everything'. But the boys soon started to worry that it was only a matter of time before the staff found out what they were really doing in the laundry room.

Meanwhile, after another Physics lesson with Dr Wilde, the boys involved in the raid on Matron's laundry decided they'd better fess up to phoning home. The first to step forward was Head Boy James Ingram; he had more to lose than the others. They all went back to Dr Wilde's classroom to apologize. James said 'Sir, we've come to admit to you that all five of us have attempted to use the telephone in the laundry room. But we know we shouldn't have done it and we feel awful about it'. Dr Wilde then addressed the five buys involved en masse; 'Alright. I'm going to need to think about what action needs to be taken. I can't say off the top of my head; I need to think it through, because I will take into account that you have confessed your crime before we've had to find out about it. But James was starting to worry he could lose his Head Boy badge. He made a statement for the cameras; 'Obviously being a Head Boy is extremely important. If I were to have that taken away from me, I would obviously lose my credibility as a student, and as a companion to the other boys. James Ingram was once again on thin ice...


	12. Changing Of The Guard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the screws of the Charles Darwin Grammar mechanism continue to tighten, James Ingram's position as Head Boy could be in danger, which could pave the way for a Disney Prince to rise and depose him. But can school rebel Scott Peters change his ways, or is he limping into even hotter water?

The last academic lesson of the day was Music with Mr Stanley. That day, we boys had a test. 'We have an opportunity today to complete an assessment. This test will cover reading and writing music, the rhythmic table, and finally, all our work on Beethoven's 5th Symphony'. A basic knowledge of the great composers was standard fare for all pupils in the 50s, but Scott Peters wasn't inspired by classical music. He was trying it on once again. He claimed that he was ill. 'Well, if your ill, we need to go and see Matron', Mr Stanley told him. He asked Peters to sit up again but he refused. He then tried moving Peters' desk, but he still wouldn't engage. Mr Stanley was too baffled to become angry. All he could ask Peters was this; 'What're we going to do with you, Peters? If you're not being silly and disruptive, you're completely isolating yourself from the work by being 'ill''.

Next up in for the boys was P.T, Peters' favourite lesson, taught by Mr Tomms. This time, they were learning how to throw a javelin. 1950s P.E, for boys at least, hardened back to the ancient ideal of proud and fearless warrior athletes competing at the Olympic Games. And in this contest, Scott Peters was the star athlete. His impressive performance attracted the attention of Mr Stanley. 'You seem to have made a miraculous recovery, Peters'. 'Yes, Sir', Peters replied with a smug expression. 'You know you're gonna have to resit that music test at some point'. And indeed, Peters did. At break time, Mr Stanley summoned Peters back to his classroom. In the disciplinarian environment of a 1950s grammar school, nobody could get off a music test scot-free. 'I am not happy with your effort. I want you to do it again, I want you to write out much more neatly, and I want you to answer some of the questions properly'. 'But why is everyone else not resitting it?!', Peters asked in frustration. 'Because they were not asleep during MY MUSIC TEST! Get on with it!', Mr Stanley retorted. Despite Peters' argumentative front, Mr Stanley had prevailed. And in the afternoon, Peters, amazingly, was taking part in CCF without complaint. Perhaps 50s discipline was finally starting to change his attitude. It was too early to declare victory, but the school was winning for the moment.

We were now fast approaching the halfway point in our term at Charles Darwin Grammar School. In two weeks' time, we would be sitting 1950s O Levels across various subjects. In that morning's English lesson with Miss Gibson, we girls were writing sonnets. 'Yesterday, we were looking at the sonnet form. To remind you for those who may have forgotten, 'iambic' stresses that it's an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, and 'pentameter' signifies that there are five feet in each line. In today's creative writing lessons, the emphasis is on self-expression, and there is an underlying assumption that every student has something valuable to say. Back in the 1950s, poetry was about rules and precise use of form, meter and rhyme. Sally Rushton was first up. 'Could I compare thee to the stars of night, their light traversing infinite miles of space? Yes; for I will journey just for the sight of that, the wondrous beacon of your face'. Next was Corrine Stewart; 'Do you remember that day when I said that you hurt me and really left a mark? Then I explained that I wanted you dead, and thus the world suddenly turns dark'. Finally came Cinderella; 'The more I look, the more I want to be yours with a radiant smile on my face. Now, forever, and for eternity, anything to get me out of this place. I will be with you one day, I am sure, for I will always be there for you, and I know that my love for you is pure, and the dream that we wish will come true. So this is love, I want you to know, and we'll soon discover how far dreams can go'. Miss Gibson couldn't help but shed a tear at Cinderella's sonnet.

So, would today's boys be anymore in touch with their emotions? Scally Scouser Luke Mills had his own sonnet; 'Hand in hand with you, I feel such a pride. You, to me, mean such a holy great deal'. As did Head Boy James Ingram; 'And so, I sit with a night upon my wrist. Drip, drip, as the blood leaves me like your kiss'. And finally, Kit dropped his own romantic bombshell; 'Take my hand and run to the end of time. Just come with me, and your heart will be mine'. After lessons, Cinderella and Kit delivered their sonnets to each other and almost everyone cheered, with the exception of Scott Peters and Vicki Buxton. Not even the six-inch rule could replace true love.

For the boys who broke into Matron's laundry (James Ingram, Prince Kit, Prince Eugene, William Ho and Luke Mills), there was different kind of mortification. Their punishment was to wash the girls' underwear and socks. At one point, William Ho saw sweat in on a pair of undies, he remarked 'There's proper sweat in them!'. 'There'll be more than sweat in them, I'll tell you', Matron retorted. For a punishment, the boys were actually enjoying it in a way. But after all the smelly smalls, there was further ordeal in store for Head Boy James Ingram.

That afternoon, James was called in to see Mr Warr. He seemed much more disappointed than angry. 'Yesterday, Dr Wilde brought it to my attention that there was an incident involving access to a telephone by some of the boys. I would've thought, fortunately for me, I.E the school, that you were there. Your job, Ingram, was to say to the boys that they couldn't. However, not only did you not stop the boys, but I understand that you, yourself, used the phone. Is that correct?'. 'Yes, Sir', a guilty James answered. 'For that breach of trust, you, of course, can no longer carry on as Head Boy at this school. You have manacled my hands, and you have left me with no alternative. So if you just take your badge off, please'. Prince Kit was later summoned to Mr Warr's office and appointmented as the replacement Head Boy. Mr Warr had a few words regarding the former Head Boy. 'When I appointed Ingram, it seemed like a good idea, because I felt that Ingram had leadership qualities and when you offer a position of responsibility to someone, they succeed in most cases. Unfortunately, in this particular case, the role was just too big for him'.

We had now reached the halfway point in our term at Charles Darwin Grammar, and the pressure was about to be turned up evermore. A long road still awaited us before we sat genuine 1950s O Levels and find out if the That'll Teach 'Em experiment was really worth it.


	13. Enough Is Enough?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the kids enter their third week at Charles Darwin Grammar School, the pressure is about to be turned up, which could spell doom for two of the rebels of Nightingale Dorm...

We had now reached the halfway point in our time at Charles Darwin Grammar, and we had come a long way. The boys and girls had been kept firmly apart, and subjected to an array of explosive and intense lessons. On top of that, we had endured 7am wake-up calls, disgusting school dinners and harsh discipline. It had been a tough two weeks. We were to sit genuine 1950s O Levels at the end of term. Would the girls stretch their lead, or would the boys fight back?

It was now the start of our third week at Charles Darwin Grammar, and in that morning's assembly, Mr Warr was giving us an update on the academic competition between the girls and the boys. 'Now a few words about the academic progress of the school. First of all, English Language. Miss Gibson says that the girls are doing significantly better than the boys, with much more attention to spelling, grammar and technical accuracy. Mathematics; Miss Carter says that the girls are marginally better than the boys. Biology; Mr Williams says that the girls are starting to pull ahead of the boys, as they are starting to better embrace the practical approach. Physics; Dr Wilde says that the boys were slightly ahead after the test, but that the girls have now caught up. And finally, Chemistry; Dr Szydlo says that the girls were initially better, but that the boys are now showing more determination and have overtaken the girls'. At the end of term, we would all be sitting genuine 1950s O Levels, so the boys would have to pull up their socks if they wanted to gain an advantage against the girls.

The first lesson of that day was Chemistry with Dr Szydlo, the only subject we girls were trailing in. The boys liked nothing more than smells and bangs, but we had struggled with this traditionally male approach since we arrived at Charles Darwin. In this lesson, Dr Szydlo was demonstrating basic chemical reactions. He intended to show us that Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) had similar properties to Sulfur Dioxide (S02). But as usual, we were disinterested. By the time he'd moved onto the final sample, we were well and truly switched off, and when we switched off, we became disruptive. Elsa and Amy started flicking ink at Dr Szydlo's labcoat to vent their frustration. It wasn't long before they managed to disrupt the entire class. But if Amy and Elsa thought they could get away with it, they had another think coming.

Shortly after the lesson, Dr Szydlo inspected his splattered labcoat and had little difficulty deducing who was responsible. Amy and Elsa happened to be sitting very close to him, and they also asked for more ink on occasion. Dr Szydlo knew almost immediately that they were the culprits. Later that morning, Amy and Elsa were summoned back to Dr Szydlo's lab, where he had designed a punishment to fit the crime. He forced Amy and Elsa to launder his lab coats, which was a perfect way to teach them a lesson. At one point amy remarked 'It's impossible to remove the ink'. 'Well, carry on; that's the whole point! I wouldn't have sent you an easy task, would I?', Dr Szydlo retorted. Elsa had her own counterargument; 'But there's a difference between being impossible and being just difficult'. But of course, Dr Szydlo had the final word; 'Well, I'll decide on how impossible it is, so carry on'. Amy and Elsa had both been in trouble since they arrived, and had been repeatedly punished, but they obviously hadn't learnt their lesson and continued to rebel. They were sliding ever-closer to expulsion from Charles Darwin Grammar.

The next lesson for the girls was English with Miss Gibson, one of the subjects girls in the 50s excelled in. In order to get anywhere with our O Levels, we would have to be able to recite large chunks of text, so each of the girls were given a poem which they were to memorise and recite to the class. There was some last-minute cramming amongst the girls, but Amy and Elsa resorted to the age-old writing-on-the-hand trick. First up was Kayleigh Durman. She was reciting 'London' by William Blake, easy enough. 'I wander thro' each charter'd street, near where the charter'd Thames does flow. And mark in every-'. Kayleigh couldn't recite anymore and was told to return to her seat. Learning by heart was a stark contrast to what we were used to; in GCSE English, students were allowed to take annotated text into their exams. Next up was Ashleigh Walters who was reciting 'The Charge Of The Light Brigade' by Lord Alfred Tennyson. 'Half a league, half a league, half a league onward. All in the valley of death rode the six-hundred. Forward, the-'. Ashleigh couldn't remember anything beyond this. Rapunzel was then made to recite 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud' by William Wordsworth. She was one of the few girls who could remember everything. Finally came Amy, who should've known by now that nothing got past Miss Gibson's beady eye. 'How do I love thee? Let me count the ways-'. She stammered over her words for a moment and realized she'd forgotten. 'Sit down, Amy. You've earnt a demerit for trying to cheat, as have you, Elsa'. Miss Gibson felt the need to talk some sense into the girls about memorisation. 'Are you aware, ladies? The memory is a muscle that needs exercising. The reason we learn poetry is because it exercises the memory muscle. There is no reason why intelligent young ladies cannot memorise these words'. These GCSE high-flyers were falling extremely short of 1950s O Level standards.

So would us boys do any better? Sebastian Jefford also had to recite Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. 'How do I love thee? Let me count the ways'. He stammered over his words for a second and then remarked 'And then it goes a bit pear-shaped', much to Miss Gibson's disappointment. Chris Hedley then had to recite 'Drummer Hodge' by Thomas Hardy. 'They throw him into Drummer Hodge to rest', he began. But after a few seconds, Chris realized he couldn't remember anything else. I was called up to recite 'London', and Kit was called up to recite 'Charge Of The Light Brigade', and we were the only two boys who could remember everything. And then, Nathan Anidugbe, who had to recite 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud', had the audacity to write cheat notes on his hands, but to everyone's amazement, got away with it scot-free, unlike Amy and Elsa. But I wouldn't dare take the risk, there was still a danger I could get caught. After the lesson, everyone started to lament not being able to grasp memorisation. Chris Hedley said to the cameras 'I'm quite good at remembering things and I had it so clear in my mind before I went up there, and then when I got there, my mind went blank. I didn't have a clue what I was doing and I just felt stupid up there'.

Having added cheating to their list of crimes, Amy and Elsa both decided to jump before they were pushed. They asked to see Mr Warr for permission to leave. Matron took them up to the office and went in to ask Mr Warr. But he was simply too exhausted to be yelling at anyone. 'I'm sorry, Matron. Could you just go and tell the girls that I just haven't got the energy to lecture anyone at the moment. They're both free to go; I just don't see any point in messing one with them. They've just proven themselves to be a pair of rude and petulant young ladies of virtually no value to this school, and they don't have much academic potential. I'm sorry it had to come to this'. Matron then left the office and escorted the girls off the premises. As Amy and Elsa left Charles Darwin Grammar in shame, just as Brennon Gunston did 2 weeks earlier, Mr Warr had some final words of despair; 'They just proved themselves to be a pair of weak, self-obsessed young ladies of...little value to this school. Things have changed remarkably since the 1950s. In 2005, that sort of behaviour is pretty much accepted. There's very little teachers can do, and so children are getting away with more, and more, and more'. Many of the girls were devestated to learn of Amy and Elsa's departure, especially Anna. Perhaps this experiment wasn't doing everyone good. But, there was still potential...


	14. Fight Or Submit?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As we switch over to Ariel's perspective, the boys and girls finally submit to 1950s practical teaching, as a number of students rebel in a brand new way; breaking the infamous 'Six-Inch' rule, leaving Scott Peters and Vicki Buxton in danger again.

We had now reached the halfway point in our time at Charles Darwin Grammar, and we had come a long way. The boys and girls had been kept firmly apart, and subjected to an array of explosive and intense lessons. On top of that, we had endured 7am wake-up calls, disgusting school dinners and harsh discipline. It had been a tough two weeks. We were to sit genuine 1950s O Levels at the end of term. Would the girls stretch their lead, or would the boys fight back?

It was now the start of our third week at Charles Darwin Grammar, and in that morning's assembly, Mr Warr was giving us an update on the academic competition between the girls and the boys. 'Now a few words about the academic progress of the school. First of all, English Language. Miss Gibson says that the girls are doing significantly better than the boys, with much more attention to spelling, grammar and technical accuracy. Mathematics; Miss Carter says that the girls are marginally better than the boys. Biology; Mr Williams says that the girls are starting to pull ahead of the boys, as they are starting to better embrace the practical approach. Physics; Dr Wilde says that the boys were slightly ahead after the test, but that the girls have now caught up. And finally, Chemistry; Dr Szydlo says that the girls were initially better, but that the boys are now showing more determination and have overtaken the girls'. At the end of term, we would all be sitting genuine 1950s O Levels, so the boys would have to pull up their socks if they wanted to gain an advantage against the girls.

The first lesson of that day was Chemistry with Dr Szydlo, the only subject we girls were trailing in. The boys liked nothing more than smells and bangs, but we had struggled with this traditionally male approach since we arrived at Charles Darwin. In this lesson, Dr Szydlo was demonstrating basic chemical reactions. He intended to show us that Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) had similar properties to Sulfur Dioxide (S02). But as usual, we were disinterested. By the time he'd moved onto the final sample, we were well and truly switched off, and when we switched off, we became disruptive. Elsa and Amy started flicking ink at Dr Szydlo's labcoat to vent their frustration. It wasn't long before they managed to disrupt the entire class. But if Amy and Elsa thought they could get away with it, they had another think coming.

Shortly after the lesson, Dr Szydlo inspected his splattered labcoat and had little difficulty deducing who was responsible. Amy and Elsa happened to be sitting very close to him, and they also asked for more ink on occasion. Dr Szydlo knew almost immediately that they were the culprits. Later that morning, Amy and Elsa were summoned back to Dr Szydlo's lab, where he had designed a punishment to fit the crime. He forced Amy and Elsa to launder his lab coats, which was a perfect way to teach them a lesson. At one point amy remarked 'It's impossible to remove the ink'. 'Well, carry on; that's the whole point! I wouldn't have sent you an easy task, would I?', Dr Szydlo retorted. Elsa had her own counterargument; 'But there's a difference between being impossible and being just difficult'. But of course, Dr Szydlo had the final word; 'Well, I'll decide on how impossible it is, so carry on'. Amy and Elsa had both been in trouble since they arrived, and had been repeatedly punished, but they obviously hadn't learnt their lesson and continued to rebel. They were sliding ever-closer to expulsion from Charles Darwin Grammar.

The next lesson for the girls was English with Miss Gibson, one of the subjects girls in the 50s excelled in. In order to get anywhere with our O Levels, we would have to be able to recite large chunks of text, so each of the girls were given a poem which they were to memorise and recite to the class. There was some last-minute cramming amongst the girls, but Amy and Elsa resorted to the age-old writing-on-the-hand trick. First up was Kayleigh Durman. She was reciting 'London' by William Blake, easy enough. 'I wander thro' each charter'd street, near where the charter'd Thames does flow. And mark in every-'. Kayleigh couldn't recite anymore and was told to return to her seat. Learning by heart was a stark contrast to what we were used to; in GCSE English, students were allowed to take annotated text into their exams. Next up was Ashleigh Walters who was reciting 'The Charge Of The Light Brigade' by Lord Alfred Tennyson. 'Half a league, half a league, half a league onward. All in the valley of death rode the six-hundred. Forward, the-'. Ashleigh couldn't remember anything beyond this. Rapunzel was then made to recite 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud' by William Wordsworth. She was one of the few girls who could remember everything. Finally came Amy, who should've known by now that nothing got past Miss Gibson's beady eye. 'How do I love thee? Let me count the ways-'. She stammered over her words for a moment and realized she'd forgotten. 'Sit down, Amy. You've earnt a demerit for trying to cheat, as have you, Elsa'. Miss Gibson felt the need to talk some sense into the girls about memorisation. 'Are you aware, ladies? The memory is a muscle that needs exercising. The reason we learn poetry is because it exercises the memory muscle. There is no reason why intelligent young ladies cannot memorise these words'. These GCSE high-flyers were falling extremely short of 1950s O Level standards.

So would us boys do any better? Sebastian Jefford also had to recite Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. 'How do I love thee? Let me count the ways'. He stammered over his words for a second and then remarked 'And then it goes a bit pear-shaped', much to Miss Gibson's disappointment. Chris Hedley then had to recite 'Drummer Hodge' by Thomas Hardy. 'They throw him into Drummer Hodge to rest', he began. But after a few seconds, Chris realized he couldn't remember anything else. I was called up to recite 'London', and Kit was called up to recite 'Charge Of The Light Brigade', and we were the only two boys who could remember everything. And then, Nathan Anidugbe, who had to recite 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud', had the audacity to write cheat notes on his hands, but to everyone's amazement, got away with it scot-free, unlike Amy and Elsa. But I wouldn't dare take the risk, there was still a danger I could get caught. After the lesson, everyone started to lament not being able to grasp memorisation. Chris Hedley said to the cameras 'I'm quite good at remembering things and I had it so clear in my mind before I went up there, and then when I got there, my mind went blank. I didn't have a clue what I was doing and I just felt stupid up there'.

Having added cheating to their list of crimes, Amy and Elsa both decided to jump before they were pushed. They asked to see Mr Warr for permission to leave. Matron took them up to the office and went in to ask Mr Warr. But he was simply too exhausted to be yelling at anyone. 'I'm sorry, Matron. Could you just go and tell the girls that I just haven't got the energy to lecture anyone at the moment. They're both free to go; I just don't see any point in messing one with them. They've just proven themselves to be a pair of rude and petulant young ladies of virtually no value to this school, and they don't have much academic potential. I'm sorry it had to come to this'. Matron then left the office and escorted the girls off the premises. As Amy and Elsa left Charles Darwin Grammar in shame, just as Brennon Gunston did 2 weeks earlier, Mr Warr had some final words of despair; 'They just proved themselves to be a pair of weak, self-obsessed young ladies of...little value to this school. Things have changed remarkably since the 1950s. In 2005, that sort of behaviour is pretty much accepted. There's very little teachers can do, and so children are getting away with more, and more, and more'. Many of the girls were devestated to learn of Amy and Elsa's departure, especially Anna. Perhaps this experiment wasn't doing everyone good. But, there was still potential...


	15. Angel VS Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scott Peters, every teacher's worst nightmare, is on slowly melting ice at Charles Darwin Grammar, but things could be about to take a terrifying turn for both him and Ariel, a horrible school conflict begins to arise...

Since we arrived at Charles Darwin Grammar, the boys and girls had been taught separately. Back in the 1950s, grammar schools believed mixed classes were detrimental to academic success, but due to a staff meeting, the boys and girls now had to share an academic lesson together for the first time that term. This time, it was English with Miss Gibson, who had little experience teaching boys prior to That'll Teach 'Em. 'In today's lesson, we will be looking at Chaucer and Middle English. Open your English books, please. *Without talking*, I hasten to add'. There had already been a few isolated incidents of disruptive behaviour in the single-sex classes, but as with the first rehearsal for the Mikado, the boys and girls were now sitting alongside each other, and the whole class soon became chatty and restless. And this time, the boys were finding it harder to concentrate with the distraction of a female audience. One of Scott Peters' minions, Nate Anidugbe stook is tongue out to Ruby Lally, and Miss Gibson confronted him. 'Are you showing off because you're in a classroom full of girls?', she asked. 'No, Miss', Nate responded vehemently. 'Get out', Miss Gibson retorted. 'But Miss-', Nate snarled back. 'Get out', Miss Gibson calmly repeated. 'What's wrong?', Nate asked one final time. 'The attitude. Get out', Miss Gibson replied calmly. Nate then left the room and started sulking.

The girls weren't doing much better. Many were whispering across the room to the boys and some even dashing spare pens over to them, much to Miss Gibson's chagrin. Even Head Girl Cinderella was struggling to keep a straight face. Miss Gibson eventually called me up to the front of the room. 'Ariel, have a go at reading the General Prologue in its Middle English form'. I just stammered over my words for quite a while, unable to pronounce many of the Medieval terms. Miss Gibson's patience started to wear thin. 'Ariel, could you at least *attempt* it?', she asked impatiently. 'I tried. I can read the normal words but not the Medieval ones, I protested. 'Oh, sit down, Ariel', Miss Gibson sighed, out of all hope. 'Stop talking. This is going to be a very slow lesson, because I am not going to talk over anyone. Anything we don't complete now, we will have to do in your free time this evening'. Miss Gibson could still see some fidgeting in the rows and added 'I'm waiting for the fidgeting to stop before I can continue'. But some of us just couldn't contain ourselves. Miss Gibson noticed Jessica Boulton and Ruby Lally giggling. Ruby was made to stand on her chair with her hands on her head, while Jessica was told to stand in the corner with her nose to the wall. She also noticed Sebastian Jefford hadn't annotated his text at all. His excuse; 'You said you can annotate *if you want*, and I *didn't* want to'. But some of the older and better behaved boys were becoming frustrated at not being able to focus. As Scott Peters burst into another silly acapella of the school anthem, a frustrated Eric protested 'Can you just sit down a shut up for a minute, Peters?! Some of us trying to work here!'.

Unsurprisingly, Peters didn't take kindly to this at all. 'You're not a bloody teacher, Eric. You're not even Head Boy, so you've no right to tell me what to do'. Eric pushed back by saying 'I'm frustrated; most of us are!'. 'Well, I don't give a damn! None of you will be able to control me! None of you will be able to tell me what to do!', Peters retorted. 'We do not want to control you, Peters!', Kit yelled from afar. 'EVERYONE JUST SHUT UP!', Miss Gibson squawked, desperately trying to regain control, but Peters wouldn't give up without a fight. 'YOU KEEP YOUR NOSE OUT OF THIS, WOMAN!', Peters thundered, in an uncharacteristic display of anger. He then slammed his fist down on Eric's desk, as the whole room descended into stony silence. Peters then screamed in a Warr-esque fashion 'I HAVE GOT NOTHING TO BE SORRY FOR! I REPEAT, NOTHING WHATSOEVER!'. 'I DON'T DESERVE THIS, PETERS! I JUST WANTED TO CONCENTRATE!'. But Eric had pushed Peters too far. Peters grabbed hold of Eric's tie, as if to try and slam his face down onto his desk, and there was a catalytic uproar, but Prince Kit and James Ingram swiftly intervened and pried Peters away. 'GET THE HELL OFF ME!', Peters howled, unable to contain his fury. Mr Warr arrived right on cue, and felt the need to evacuate the room for everyone else's safety. 'Right, everyone outside, quickly!', he ordered. Everyone quickly left the classroom, as Kit and James hauled Peters to one side. 'What the hell has he done now?!', Mr Warr demanded to know. 'He grabbed Eric's tie and tried to assault him, and he was rude to Miss Gibson', Kit explained. 'Right, get him over to Mr Williams' office at once, and tell him put Peters into isolation for 24 hours', Mr Warr continued, as James and Kit escorted Peters out of Miss Gibson's classroom. One thing was for certain; a mixed environment wasn't so conducive to learning. After the lesson, an exhausted Miss Gibson commented to the cameras; 'I felt there was just an undercurrent of disruption the whole time. It was actually quite a difficult lesson. I don't think that either the girls or the boys were able to learn what I wanted them to learn'.

After the disastrous mixed English, the boys and girls were back in their single-sex classes. Next up for the boys was another English lesson with Miss Gibson. She was in no mood for disruption after the previous lesson, but in Scott Peters' absence, there was much calmer atmosphere in the classroom. Even Sebastian Jefford was much more focussed than usual. A relieved Miss Gibson remarked to the camera 'The atmosphere in the lesson was completely different without Peters. They boys were really engaged, they didn't need any chivvying at all to get on with the work. It may have just been a coincidence that Peters wasn't in the lesson, but there was a much calmer atmosphere altogether, and it meant that they were actually able to learn something'. The studious mood continued in Maths. Again, Miss Carter said the boys were more focussed without Peters being there, much to her relief. It looked like the boys were finally using their opportunities wisely to catch up with the girls. Meanwhile, Peters was being put into isolation. For the next 24 hours, he would have to work, eat and sleep in the assembly hall. Most modern schools bend over backwards to keep disruptive pupils in the classroom. Back in the 1950s, on the other hand, bad behaviour simply wasn't tolerated, and was dealt with swiftly. But, Scott Peters just didn't get it. He commented 'I can understand why they've done it; because everything else they've tried hasn't worked, but I don't really think I *should* be here. Vicki Buxton was thinking of asking Mr Warr about exactly what would happen to Peters, but soon had second thoughts when she decided he wouldn't take such a request lightly. Some of the lads now wanted Peters back. Luke Mills, for example, commented that 'With Scott gone, there's nobody out there causing any trouble. Even Nathan's calmed right down. So, I guess it is calmer without Scott, but we all want him back of course, because he's a right laugh'.

Later that day, the boys and girls returned to Science Club to finish off their go-karts, as the race was due to take place the following day. Dr Szydlo had a surprise announcement about the prize; 'For the completion of the race, and the winner of the race, the prize is a delicious dinner of fish and chips for the entire winning team. So either it's the girls, or the boys'. Competition was now mounting between both sets of students, as both go-karts were coming together. Industrial espionage was now springing up on both sides; at one point, Elsa and I went to spy on the boys to see how they were designing the mechanics of their kart. They caught us red-handed, and swiftly sent the blinds tumbling down to protect themselves. William Ho from the boys also went to spy on the girls, but he too got caught in the act. None of the teachers seemed to think these were disciplinary issues at all, and they instead let the boys and girls do what they pleased to gain an advantage. The only time Dr Wilde had to intervene was when Simon Taylor confronted Emily Williams about her taking a pair of the boys' wheels! She did eventually give the wheels back to him, but we already had a competitive advantage anyway; while the boys needlessly focussed heavily on weighty wooden mechanics, we girls focussed on the aesthetics, and we gave the cart a much lighter and stronger metal structure. Only the race would reveal who worked better as a team. I would be the ultimate battle of the sexes. Meanwhile, the rumor mill was in full-swing about the whereabouts of Peters. Luke Mills remarked to the cameras; 'We have no idea where Peters is; he could've been expelled, or he could just be in isolation. Qadeer says he's still here, but Vicki reckons he's been kicked out'. Cinderella commented 'I don't think he has actually been expelled yet. Apparently they have to talk to the governors, which isn't going to happen until tomorrow'. Eric and I were both adamant that Peters' time at Charles Darwin Grammar was up, as did former Head Boy James Ingram. But, Rapunzel and Eugene believed he had only a 50/50 chance of being excluded. Belle would later say 'Apparently Matron wants him to leave, but the Headmaster wants to give him one more chance. There's loads of stuff going round, but I'm genuinely not sure what's gonna happen to Peters'. Little did we all know that Peters was tucked up in bed just a few meters away from us. The fate of Scott Peters would be decided the following morning...


	16. Make Or Break?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scott Peters is on thinner ice than ever before, but can he get back on an even keel before it's too late? And will the boys salvage their wounded egos at the go-kart race?

A new day dawned over Charles Darwin Grammar. It was now the tail-end of the third week, and after spending 24 hours in isolation, Scott Peters was about to be summoned to see Mr Warr. Little did he know this would be the final time he would be standing in front of this brutal professor before his potential expulsion. Mr Williams woke Peters up and frogmarched him over to Mr Warr's office, where here still remained surprisingly calm. 'Stand in front of me, please, Peters. You've completed 24 hours in isolation. Whether or not you found that arduous, I have no idea. But I'm telling you now, fairly and squarely, that this is the last time you will be standing in front of me on a disciplinary issue, because the next time it happens, I will be telling you to pack your bags and to leave this school, and you will leave in disgrace. You will go back into the school now, and from now on, I will be expecting you to adjoin to school life in a positive, earnest manner, and to take a full, and active part in every area of the curriculum. Is that understood, Peters?'. 'Yes, Sir', Peters answered. Peters was then ordered out of the Headmaster's Office to rejoin his classmates. Only now did he realize how dangerously close he was to expulsion. Peters got a hero's welcome from both the boys and the girls. But Vicki felt the need to keep her distance; if Peters broke the six-inch rule, he would be expelled from Charles Darwin Grammar there and then. 'So, does this mean you're on your final warning, Scott?', Kit asked. 'I'm afraid so', he replied. So was 50s discipline having *any* impact on this teenage miscreant? Peters claimed his attitude had changed now that he knew how close he was to leaving Charles Darwin. He now resolved to try his utmost to stay out of trouble.

The boys had a rehearsal that day for their end-of-term production of Gilbert And Sullivan's Mikado. Mr Stanley decided after the disastrous mixed rehearsal that the boys and girls should rehearse separately to keep their behaviour under control. The boys were now practicing not only for the Mikado, but also offered to do another number from another G&S operetta; HMS Pinafore. They decided to sing a song called 'I Am The Captain Of The Pinafore'. Kit was to play the Captain, and the rehearsal went extremely well:

_ **Kit: I am the Captain of the Pinafore!** _

_ **Boys: And a right good Captain too!** _

_ **Kit:You’re very, very good, and be it understood, I command a right good crew!** _

_ **Boys: We're very, very good, and be it understood, he commands a right good crew!** _

_ **Kit: Though related to a peer,** _

_ **I can hand, reef, and steer,** _

_ **And ship a selvagee;** _

_ **I am never known to quail** _

_ **At the fury of a gale,** _

_ **And I’m never, never sick at sea!** _

_ **Boys: What, never?!** _

_ **Kit: No, never!** _

_ **Boys: What, never?!** _

_ **Kit: Well...hardly ever!** _

_ **Boys: He’s hardly ever sick at sea!** _

_ **Then give three cheers, and one cheer more,** _

_ **For the hardy Captain of the Pinafore!** _

_ **Yes give three cheers and one cheer more** _

_ **For the Captain of the Pinafore!** _

And so, later that day, came the long-awaited go-kart race. The result of both teams' efforts to build their karts resulted in a heavyweight wooden macho machine for Beagle Dorm, and a lighter metal girly go kart for Nightingale. At the announcer's chair was Mr Warr, who made the opening speech. 'Welcome everyone to the Charles Darwin Go-Kart Race, an event of light relief before we enter the exam period! As you all know, the prize for this race is a sumptuous meal of fish and chips for the entire winning team. The losers get precisely nothing. So, remember what the Ancient Greeks told you; coming second is nowhere! So, it's all about winning!'. Mr Williams waved the chequered flag and the go-karts began to traverse the course. In the girls' kart; Jessica Boulton pushed by Cinderella, in the boys' kart; Qadeer Razaque pushed by Prince Kit. Each team would have to complete five laps of the course if they were to win, changing drive each lap.

Both teams were virtually neck-and neck for the first three laps; although the boys' kart tended to go slower, the girls experienced more crashes. By the time they changed drivers a third time (Prince Eric and James Ingram for the boys, Ariel and Corrine Stewart for the girls), the boys' kart was becoming increasingly unwieldy. Eventually, one of the front wheels on the boys' weighty cart broke off, and the final two drivers (Prince Eugene and Michael Petkov) were forced to resort to carrying it. But it was too little, too late. The girls' kart (now piloted by Rapunzel and Kayleigh Durman) crossed the finishing line unopposed. A rousing chorus of the school anthem rubbed more salt into the boys' wounds. And later that evening, we girls got our prize of fish and chips for dinner, while the boys had to settle for liver stew and boiled carrots. The boys, especially Kit, were distraught. Chris Hedley made a comment to the cameras in the diary room; 'The girls are kicking are arses. We are just doing so badly'.

Later that night, the school organized a dance. The boys were allowed to put on aftershave and brylcreem, and the girls were given Matron's makeup. To top it all off, the Six-Inch Rule was relaxed for that evening. Some of the boys and girls were already negotiating who to dance with. For example, Cinderella had already made an arrangement to dance with Luke Mills once she'd danced with Kit, Simon Taylor asked to dance with Rapunzel, ex-head boy James Ingram wanted to dance with me once I'd danced with Eric, and Belle chose to dance with one of the school's better-behaved underdogs; Rob Hudson. And of course, Scott Peters and Vicki Buxton could finally lay their hands on each other. There was no alcohol, no cigarettes and certainly no ease, but we all had a fantastic time, even if it wasn't really cool. 50s rock n' roll music blasted out through the assembly hall, as the teachers retired to their dorms. This dance was the calm before the storm. In just a few days' time, we would be sitting genuine 1950s O Levels. So would the boys fight back, or would the girls stretch their lead? Would Scott Peters pull through, or would he finally get his marching orders? All would be revealed in the coming week...


	17. The Resolution of Scott Peters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the boys and girls of Charles Darwin Grammar enter their final week before returning to the 21st Century, we switch over to Head Boy Prince Kit's perspective, and the dreaded O Level exams await! But this could be the end of the road for Scott Peters...

In August 2005, 30 modern teenagers, and a select number of Disney Princes and Princesses enrolled at Charles Darwin Grammar; a post-war boarding school founded on the principle of teaching boys and girls separately, lead by one of the world's most brutal headmasters; Simon Warr. For the past three weeks, we had faced harsh discipline, austere living conditions, and a tough academic timetable with an emphasis on the sciences. And not all of us had pulled through; 2 of the girls and one of the boys had pulled out within the first two weeks, and one or two of us had come within inches of being expelled. In 2005, girls outperformed boys by 10%, so could the boys close the gap, or would the girls manage to keep ahead?

There were only 48 hours before the boys and the girls sat genuine 1950s O Levels. Despite my vigour as Head Boy, we were all sleeping in, so Dr Wilde was forced to intervene to wake us up. 'I sort of expected you would all be out of bed by now', he mumbled. Both the boys and the girls handled the pressure very differently. The girls, particularly Belle and Cinderella were quick to get their books out, and were revising avidly for Biology and Chemistry. Over in Beagle Dorm, Scott Peters had found a new way of stimulating our brains; whacking them with a toothbrush! It seemed to have an effect at first; most of us were quick to grab our books and start scanning through. But was it worth it, or was it too little, too late?

In the girls' first Biology lesson that day, they were not afraid of looking like swots. Emily Williams was asked to define an 'organ'. Her definition was 'An organ is a large structure of cells which perform a specific function in the body'. Mr Williams was more than impressed. Next, he asked Anna to define two organ systems. Her answers; 'digestive' and 'reproductive'. Next, Mr Williams asked Jenny Ritzman to define 'one, but preferably two' of the three types of cells found in the vascular bundle of a leaf. She identified the 'xylem' and 'phloem' cells. His next target was vicar's daughter Vicki Buxton, who was asked to identify the waste product of photosynthesis; 'Oxygen', and finally to my perfectly perfect wife, Cinderella, to identify the chemical formula for glucose; 'C6H12O6'. Their hard work had paid off.

We boys, on the other hand, always seemed to revel in ignorance. First of all, Mr Williams set his sights on John Kemple and told him to define an organ. Kemple stumbled over his words and was unable to give a decent answer. He then asked Joe Seath where one would find the peripheral layer in plants; he had no idea. Mr Williams asked me to define 'holophytic', and I came out with the correct answer; 'the ability for a plant to perform photosynthesis'. To everyone else's amazement, Mr Williams ordered Scott Peters to identify the next layer of a tooth below the enamel. 'I don't know, Sir', Peters groaned. 'SIT DOWN, YOU IDIOT!', Mr Williams erupted in a spectacular display of fury. Mr Williams started grilling each boy along the row in reverse alphabetical order; first Luke Mills, followed by John Kemple, Sebastian Jefford, James Ingram, Rob Hudson, William Ho, and only when he reached Chris Hedley did Mr Williams finally get the correct answer; 'DENTINE'. We knew we were going to struggle in Biology whatever happened.

Meanwhile it was lunchtime. Scott Peters was in a foul mood, having been roasted by Mr Williams for not being able to answer in Biology. He was now ranting audibly about this among his classmates. 'I HATE CCF, I HATE BEING STRIPPED AWAY FROM VICKI, AND I HATE THE TEACHERS! ALL OF 'EM! "THAT'LL TEACH 'EM"?! THEY MIGHT AS WELL CALL IT "THAT'LL HANDCUFF 'EM"! Peters had obviously reached the end of his tether with the That'll Teach 'Em experiment and was obviously spoiling for a fight. Mr Williams told Peters to keep his mouth closed, but Peters, his temper escalating, yelled 'SHUT YOUR FAT MOUTH!', and soon, the whole of Beagle Dorm descended into an argument. A few of us sided with Peters, but most sided with me. 'Oh come on, Peters, it's not *that* bad', James Ingram said, trying to calm Peters. But it served only to aggravate him even more. 'DON'T...CALL ME...PETERS!!!!!!!!', he roared back at James, to everyone's horror. Even Mr Warr himself had never displayed such uncontrollable fury. James turned to Mr Warr and meekly said 'Sir, Peters-'. Peters knew James was about to report him to the Head, and in a blind rage, he slapped poor James full on the face, and he fell back in his chair. Mr Stanley and Mr Williams were forced to step in; things had finally escalated into an altercation. I tried to restrain Peters, but I was punched in the forehead, so hard that a small cut appeared. Mr Warr then sprang up from his chair and ordered everyone out. 'CINDERELLA, GET THE GIRLS OUTSIDE! TREMAINE, GET THE BOYS OUT AS WELL!'. Cinderella complied and quickly lead the girls out, as I ushered the boys out. Eugene was ordered to stay behind to help restrain Peters, who was now blurting out horrible expletive-ridden tirade, which would have to be censored in the show itself.

Once Peters was finally still, Mr Warr slowly walked over, pulling the same animated glare he had pulled at Rapunzel on the first day of term. He was ANGERY. 'HOW DARE YOU, PETERS?!?!', he thundered. 'YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE EDUCATION SYSTEM, AND WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!!! YOU HAVE FAILED-IN EVERY-SINGLE-AREA-OF THE CURRICULUM, YOU HAVE BEEN UNFORGIVABLE INSOLENT TOWARDS EVERY SINGLE STAFF MEMBER IN THIS SCHOOL, AND WORST OF ALL...WORST OF ALL....YOU HAD THE EFFRONTERY-TO-HIT-NOT ONE, BUT TWO-POOR-STUDENTS!!!! I HAVE NEVER...I REPEAT...NEVER SEEN SUCH A HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE STUDENT!!!! YOUR TIME HERE IS AT AN END, SCOTT PETERS!!!! YOU ARE EXPELLED FROM CHARLES-DARWIN-GRAMMAR-SCHOOL-WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT!!!! GET OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUTTT!!!!!!!!'. Mr Warr's worst wrath was finally unleashed, and even Mr Williams was shaking. Cinderella was clearly shell-shocked to see Mr Warr in such a terrible state, and Rapunzel even more so. Punzie had already faced Mr Warr's wrath once, but she would never expect him to explode with such angst, and such a lack of decorum or self control. As Eugene and I frogmarched Peters back to Matron to give back his uniform and leave Charles Darwin Grammar, Mr Warr stayed in the dining room, almost in tears. He had never encountered such a despicable person, not even in his old school before he applied for season 1 of That'll Teach 'Em in 2003, and unlike his previous rants at Rapunzel and Belle, his explosive tirade at Scott Peters was, at the very least, deserved.

But even as walked away from Charles Darwin Grammar in disgrace, Peters was unrepentant. 'YOU JUST WANTED ME OUT, AND I KNEW THAT FROM THE BEGINNING!', he shrieked at Warr as we hauled him away. He saw absolutely nothing wrong with his behaviour, and he was one of the worst students of his generation. It took a while for Mr Warr to finally regain his composure before he was finally willing to give a statement to the cameras. He said 'Peters is, without a shadow of a doubt, the worst student I have ever encountered in the 24 years I've been a teacher. He was a constant troublemaker, he had no respect for authority, and he thought he was always in the right. Mr Warr felt the need to call an assembly after Peters' abhorrent blow-out. For the first time, he looked exhausted and haggard. For the first time, he wasn't the fierce, bellowing, hammy Head we all held in such high regard. He was just a normal human being who had seen too much. He slowly walked up to the podium, his head hanging low and he began a genuinely heart-wrenching speech. "As you all know, Scott Peters has been expelled from Charles Darwin Grammar. He's been nothing but trouble from the moment he walked through that door. He has no respect for authority at all, he will argue and fight his way out of any situation which he things goes against him, and he will lash out at anyone who causes him even a single ounce of offence, even if it's unintentional. He isn't fit to be here at Charles Darwin, and I don't think he ever will be. I sincerely hope that you will succeed in the face of this terrible tragedy. And I would like to thank Kit Tremaine and Eugene Fitzherbert for helping me quell this violent incident'. Cinderella and Rapunzel applauded us both, but Punzie shed a tear and said 'I'm sorry you had to go through this'. We took a bow and then sat down again, before Mr Warr continued. 'I would also like to apologize for my outburst earlier. I know I can be a fierce teacher, but I certainly didn't expect to be faced with something so dire. I hope we can all move on from these dreadful past few hours and push on through the storm. These next few days will be the most crucial of all, so all I can ask of you is to try your utmost. I am confident you will all achieve something from these four weeks and I wish you every fortune. Thank you for listening, everyone". We all applauded Mr Warr as we were dismissed for our final academic lessons of the day.

Shortly afterwards, Cinderella and I talked for a moment under the terrace. 'I'm so sorry about that, Cindy', I told her, looking a little worse for ware. 'Don't you worry, Kit. None of it was your fault. I just hope Peters gets what he deserves'. 'Me too', I replied, as Cindy wrapped me in a huge hug. 'Good luck, Cindy', I said as I headed towards my final lesson. 'You too, Kit', Cindy replied as she threw a wink at me. Mr Warr had finally showed a more human side behind his authoritarian demeanour, and our hope remained intact. We were on the home straight and we knew we could all do it.


	18. The Reality Sets In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the demise of Scott Peters, things at Charles Darwin Grammar may finally be calm again, but it may not all be plain sailing...

Now that Scott Peters, the worst student at Charles Darwin Grammar had finally been brought to justice, Cinderella and I were confident that the remaining rebels in the school would finally back down. Peters' expulsion seemed like a blessing in disguise, because on the final day of term, we were all to perform Gilbert And Sullivan's Mikado in front of our friends and families. At the beginning of term, rehearsing boys and girls together proved to be disastrous, as some of the Princesses were distracted by the boys' presence. So to combat our behaviour, we spent the rest of term rehearsing in single-sex forms. But now, with only a few days to go before Speech Day, we would have to start rehearsing together. Miss Gibson stepped forward to address us. 'Right, everyone will have their hands at their sides when they sing this. They will be imagining they are singing the gallery. There will be no nail-biting, or head-scratching, or hugging yourselves, or talking to anyone next to you'. And so, we started singing.

** _For he's going to marry Yum-Yum!_ **

** _Yum-Yum!_ **

** _Your anger pray bury, for all will be merry_ **

** _I think you had better succumb!_ **

** _Cumb-Cumb!_ **

** _And join our expressions of glee!_ **

** _On this subject I pray you be dumb_ **

** _Dumb-Dumb!_ **

** _Your notions, though many, are not worth a penny_ **

** _The word for your guidance is 'Mum'_ **

** _Mum-Mum!_ **

** _You've a very good bargain in me!_ **

** _On this subject, we pray you be dumb!_ **

** _Dumb-Dumb!_ **

** _We think you had better succumb!_ **

** _Cumb-Cumb!_ **

** _You'll find there are man who'll wed for a penny,_ **

** _Who'll wed for a penny!_ **

** _There are lots of good fish in the sea!_ **

** _There are lots of good fish in the sea!_ **

** _There's lots of good fish, good fish in the sea!_ **

** _There's lots of good fish, good fish in the sea!_ **

** _In the sea!_ **

** _In the sea!_ **

** _In the sea!_ **

** _In the sea!_ **

However, having sung like an angel with the rest of the girls, Ashleigh Walters was suddenly too cool for school. Miss Gibson took her to task. 'There is one person who is currently spoiling this for everyone, and it's Ashleigh. Ashleigh, you'll be in detention learning words because that's clearly what your problem is'. This wasn't the first time Ashleigh had been punished. She had already been made to scrub the terrace for sneaking along it the night before, and to write a multitude of essays for rebelling against the school system. And if that didn't sort out her act, she would be made to sing solo in assembly the following morning.

Ashleigh was kept behind for an hour by Mr Stanley to improve her singing voice. 'Ashleigh, your improvement can start now. We will sing this many ways. The first way we're going to sing this is a slow ballad'. And so Mr Stanley started singing in a typical cheesy ballad style, much to Ashleigh's chagrin, and she made a pretty half-hearted attempt to copy him. 'Oh for goodness' sake, Ashleigh, you are so insincere', he groaned. 'But Sir I was-', Ashleigh began to reply. 'No, you're pretty hopeless to be honest, Ashleigh. Whatever you're covering up, get rid of it, please and be a good and upright young girl', Mr Stanley retorted. Ashleigh knew she couldn't escape this time; the staff or Charles Darwin Grammar simply would not tolerate disobedience. During prep, Ashleigh Walters grumbled to her classmates about having to sing in assembly, but they were having none of it; they had adopted an us-vs-them attitude towards potential rebels on the back of Peters' expulsion, especially Sally Rushton. Ashleigh had no choice but to bow to their wishes.

The following morning, revision went into full swing for both the boys and the girls, and tension was mounting. After our disastrous performance in Biology the previous day, even we were doing some last-minute swotting. The girls, bar Ashleigh, were also revising heavily for Chemistry, the one subject where they knew they were trailing. They would hope that their industrious revision would make up for their lack of enthusiasm. But good old Cindy and Punzie were perfectly confident in their revision, as were Elsa and Anna; they enjoyed the traditionally male approach to science teaching.

Before Ashleigh took to the stage in that morning's assembly, Mr Warr had a warning for anyone else who may have thought of stepping out of line. 'If you think, because we are now in the final home straight of this term, that there is going to be any policy change from myself, or from my staff with regards to disciplinary issues, then I can assure you that there will be absolutely no change, so be warned'. Now it was Ashleigh's turn to punish her classmates' eardrums with her stupid rendition of the final song from The Mikado. Everyone hated her horrible rendition, even the likes of Vicki Buxton.

The rest of the morning was given over to revision, and the girls were quick to get their books out; they weren't afraid of looking like swots at all, although for most of the girls, the revision in Chemistry wasn't paying off. Dr Wilde was forced to intervene at one point and tell the girls a chemical formula. It seemed like only the Princesses were safe this time. In public, we boys seemed to be taking it easy, but behind closed doors, it was a very different matter. In the words of Luke Mills; 'It's kind of the opposite for boys and girls, because for the girls to be good, they tend to show that they're trying, whereas for the boys, they've gotta make it look effortless, but that's like the boys. We're all sat there with revision books when nobody's watching so that some work is being done'.

Back in the 50s, Chemistry was an unpopular subject with girls, and it seemed nothing had changed at all. The subject failed to inspire most of the girls, bar the Princesses, and so their industrious revision wasn't paying of at all. We boys, in contrast, were now excelling in the subject. So would our last-minute covert swotting be enough to impress Dr Szydlo in one of our final lessons? He was asking a number of questions to see how much had gone in. First of all, he asked me to define the chemical formula for nitric acid; 'HNO3'. He then asked Eugene to correctly identify the universal gas equation; 'P1T1/V1=P2T2/V2'. His next target was former Head Boy James Ingram to define 'Chemistry'. His definition was 'Chemistry is the science of substances, and how they change into different substances'. Next up was William Ho, who he asked to define 'compound', just as Cinderella had attempted to do in her Chemistry assessment at the beginning of term. Ho could only give half an answer; 'two or more elements chemically combined', and so Dr Szydlo fell back on Joe Seath for the second half of the definition; 'in fixed proportions by mass'. The Doc then took the opportunity to give the full, professional definition; 'a compound is a substance which contains two or more elements chemically combined in fixed proportions by mass. That's an exact definition, and please remember the importance of using these exact words'. Our improvement wasn't just down to last minute cramming. Throughout the term we had endured a series of gruelling experiments, not only in Chemistry, but also across Biology and Physics, and whilst they had left most of the girls cold, they had sparked our imaginations.

All other revision went smoothly that day in Scott Peters' absence, especially in English with Miss Gibson. She doubtless hated him more than any other teacher in the school (apart from Mr Warr of course). In CCF that day, even the lazier members of Beagle Dorm were giving it their all, and Sergeant Rae was more than impressed. And of course, our rehearsals for the Mikado ran like clockwork. It seemed we were all finally in the right frame of mind for our exams? So would we battle through our O Levels unscathed, or would we crash and burn? Our fate would be decided on that fateful day of August 26, 2005...


End file.
